The Swan Inn

A brand new novel by Zhang Yueran. The French edition has been shortlisted for the Émile Guimet Prize for Asian Literature. In a cruel world, the story of building a "Swan Hotel" where love and friendship flourishes.
Nanny Yu Ling, instigated by her boyfriend, kidnaps her employer's son under the pretext of a spring outing. However, during the outing, they learn that the boy's family is on trial for corruption, rendering the kidnapping meaningless. The boy buys a goose from a truck driver, and Yu Ling discovers a shovel used for murder in her boyfriend's car... The goose's fate and the boy's fate become inadvertently intertwined. When Yu Ling returns to the boy's family's mansion with him, a strange woman arrives, demanding to take him away. A broken security camera and frightened geese in the yard hint at someone infiltrating the backyard... Who is this person, and what are their motives? This contemporary story of good and evil, love and sin, friendship, and growing up, uses words to build a "Swan Hotel" for the homeless.
★The friendship, mutual understanding and redemption of two women, writes about the temptations, difficulties and breakthroughs faced by women of different identities today.
——Yu Ling is a nanny and the hostess Qin Wen is a painter. They come from completely different worlds, but they have a special trust in each other, which leads to a complex and profound friendship.
"She has made deals with fate so many times, and this time it seems she finally didn't lose. The only regret is that she couldn't shake hands with Qin Wen. Maybe they will never be friends, but that's not that important. She has already saved her."
"Many women have disappeared. When they jump out to say something, they disappear immediately. Yu Ling believes that many core issues have nothing to do with women. Yet women always live in an illusion, thinking they are at the center of the stage, playing an important role."
★Trying to become a better person is my way of fighting against emptiness and meaninglessness. “In the process of striving to get closer to others, we quietly change.”
"The Swan Inn tells a story of transformation from evil to good. As a pessimist, I don't really believe people can change for the better, nor do I believe in redemption. But as I grow older, a kind of compassion truly emerges, a blessing born of cowardice. Precisely because it's almost impossible, our attempts to become better become a way to combat emptiness and meaninglessness. More often than not, we are shaped by the process. In the process of trying to improve and connecting with others, we quietly change. In my opinion, those shaped by the process in novels are always more authentic and full of vitality." (Zhang Yueran)
★ Beautifully and elegantly bound, the cover features a photograph by renowned Japanese photographer Masao Yamamoto, designed by emerging designer Shio. The 32-mo hardcover is perfect for portable reading.
"Swan Hotel" is a new novel by Zhang Yueran. A carefully planned spring outing reveals a long-planned conspiracy. When the truth comes to light, what choices will the people involved make? The author juxtaposes the cruelty of reality with the fairytale-like innocence of a single space, where the dilemmas of social class and the conflicts of human nature simmer beneath the surface. Faced with the trust and dependence of a boy and the temptation and instigation of her boyfriend, how will nanny Yu Ling choose? With her past life suddenly shattered, how will she rebuild her own? With elegant yet sharp writing, Zhang Yueran depicts the intertwined love-hate relationship between Yu Ling and her hostess, Qin Wen, their mutual redemption and difficult growth. She peels back the illusions created by these illusions and deeply reveals the temptations, dilemmas, and solutions faced by contemporary women of diverse identities.

2024-07-01

上海三联书店

Ideal Country

232

9787542685186