{"product_id":"book-cbgq","title":"The Balcony","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eA \"breathtaking\" century-spanning portrait of the inhabitants of a French village  (Jennifer Egan), revealing the deception, despair, love, and longing beneath the calm surface of ordinary lives.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e What if our homes could tell the stories of others who lived there before us? Set in a small village near Paris, \u003ci\u003eThe Balcony\u003c\/i\u003e follows the inhabitants of a single estate-including a manor and a servants' cottage-over the course of several generations, from the Belle vâpoque to the present day, introducing us to a fascinating cast of characters. A young American au pair develops a crush on her brilliant employer. An ex-courtesan shocks the servants, a Jewish couple in hiding from the Gestapo attract the curiosity of the neighbors, and a housewife begins an affair while renovating her downstairs. Rich and poor, young and old, powerful and persecuted, all of these people are seeking something: meaning, love, a new beginning, or merely survival. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Throughout, cross-generational connections and troubled legacies haunt the same spaces, so that the rose garden, the forest pond, and the balcony off the manor's third floor bedroom become silent witnesses to a century of human drama.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e In her debut, Jane Delury writes with masterful economy and profound wisdom about growing up, growing old, marriage, infidelity, motherhood - in other words, about life - weaving a gorgeous tapestry of relationships, life-altering choices, and fleeting moments across the frame of the twentieth century. A sumptuous narrative of place that burrows deep into individual lives to reveal hidden regrets, resentments, and desires, \u003ci\u003eThe Balcony\u003c\/i\u003e is brimming with compassion, natural beauty, and unmistakable humanity.\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Hachette Book Group","offers":[{"title":"Audiobook","offer_id":49349329682736,"sku":"BDcbgq","price":24.98,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0879\/2784\/9264\/files\/cbgq-cover.jpg?v=1761959637","url":"https:\/\/downpour.com\/products\/book-cbgq","provider":"Downpour","version":"1.0","type":"link"}