Private Lessons: Mood Board

Private Lessons: Author's Playlist

Click here to open up the playlist on Spotify!

Don't have a Spotify? Don't worry here is the list of all the music.

1. 24 Preludes, OP. 28:1. In C Major by Frederic Chopin, Martha Argerich
2. The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 2: Prelude 3 in C-Sharp Major by Johann Sebastian Bach, Glenn Gould
3. Wouldn't It Be Nice by The Beach Boys
4. Piano Sonata No. 29 in B- Flat Major, Op. 106 by Ludwig van Beethoven, Emil Gilels
5. Waltz from Sleeping Beauty, Op. 66 by London Symphony Orchestra
6. Goldberg Variations, BWV 988: Aria
7. 12 Etudes, Op. 10: No. 2 in a Minor, Chromatique by Johann Sebastian Bach, Glenn Gould
8. Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space by Spiritualized
9. Piano Sonata No. 18 in E-Flat Major, Op 31, No. 3 "La Chasse" by Ludwig van Beethoven, Gleen Gould
10. Ballade No.1 in G Minor, Op. 23 by Frederic Chopin, Maurizio Pollini
11. Grobe Fuge, Op. 133 by Ludwig van Beethoven, Guarneri Quartet
12. Under Pressure- Remastered by Queen, David Bowie
13. Judy and the Dream of Horses by Bella & Sebastian
14. String Quartet in F Major, M. 35 1. Allegro moderato by Maurice Ravel, Emerson String Quartet
15. String Quartet in F Major, M. 35 2. Assez vif by Maurice Ravel, Emerson String Quartet
16. Violin Sonata No. 9 in A Major, Op. 47 "Kreutzer" by Ludwig van Beethoven, Anne-Sophie Mutter
17. Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op 74. pathétique by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
18. Piano Sonata No. 21 in C, Op. 53 "Waldstein" by Ludwig van Beethoven
19. Sonata No. 13 in E-Flat Major Op. 27, No.1 by Ludwig van Beethoven
20. String Quartet No. 5, lll by Philip Glass, Kronos Quartet
21. I'll Never Be the Same by Billie Holiday
22. Bach, JSz; Well-Tempered Clavie Book 2 by Daniel Barenboim
23. Lieder ohne Worte, Op.19 No.1 by Felix Mendelssohn, Daniel Barenboim
24. Premier livre, Etude 1, Desordre by Gyorgy Ligeti, Thomas Hall
25. String Quartet No. 14 in D Major by Franz Schubert, Hagen Quartett
26. Havalina by Pixies
27. I'll Never Fall in Love Again by Dionne Warwick
28. Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-Flat Major, Op. 111 moderatro cantabile molto espressivo by Ludwig Van Beethoven, Helerie Grimaud
28. Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-Flat Major, Op. 111 allegro molto by Ludwig Van Beethoven, Helerie Grimaud
29. Blue Skied An' Clear by Slowdive

Private Lessons: Interview

An interview with Cynthia Salaysay about Private Lessons 

About the book:

1.  How did you come up with the story of Private Lessons?

I was healing from a bad breakup -- I had to find a new job, find new friends, move, and rebuild my life. One day, in my new apartment in a new city, a friend said, "Write a story about a person whose teacher leads them astray." And so the book began.

2.  Who is the main character(s) in Private Lessons?

Claire is an introverted, brainy Filipino American teen who uses music like a life preserver -- it keeps her sane, makes her feel most like herself. Paul is her new, dynamic, and challenging piano teacher, who takes her under his wing. 

3.  What part was the hardest to write? The beginning, middle or the end?

The ending, absolutely. There's something about an ending that makes me feel like -- well? Did I do that right? 

4.  What was the hardest scene to write in Private Lessons?   

The most intimate scene between Paul and Claire was the hardest to write. It took a long time to get just right. I'd take a stab at it, look at it, put it down, wait six months, try again. When I finally figured out how to approach it and wrote what ended up in the book,  I was surprised how affected I was by writing it. 

5.   Where can readers purchase Private Lessons?  

You can find Private Lessons on Indiebound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781536209600

About the author:

1.    If a director wanted to make Private Lessons into a movie and wanted you to act in it, who would you be and why?

I think I would want to be in it if it were a musical and I could be one of the women in the chorus.

2.    What are some of your favorite tv shows or movies?

I recently watched The Half of It and loved absolutely everything about it. I loved how rich and lovable the characters were. A lot of cliches are presented and later broken. Also, I really liked seeing an immigrant family in which one of the parents is gone. I grew up this way and it can be very isolating and it was nice to see that experience mirrored in another person's story. Schitt's Creek is pure fizzy fun. I love an old French film called Forbidden Games (Les Jeux Interdits) about a boy who teaches a girl to deal with death by building a pet cemetery. The love between them is so fierce and strange.

3.    If you could have dinner with any 3 people (fictional, real or dead), who would it be? 

Oh I thought sooo much about this. I decided I would like to have dinner with Virginia Woolf, Audre Lorde, and Natalie Diaz. They are all brilliant queer writers and I love it when women get together -- it can be more relaxed. Though I would probably not talk much, and just listen. 

Private Lessons: Review

Rating: 3/5 stars
Review:
This was enjoyable and easy to read. It's about Claire who is 17 years old and wants to be a professional pianist. She lives with an overprotective mother and takes classes with an instructor named Paul who she wants to impress. Claire learns about who is she making this a coming of age novel.

The writing of this book was okay. It was good enough to keep making me read this book but I was more interested in how the story would end. Claire is the main character who is passionate about the piano. She is one of those girls who wants to be seen and have a boyfriend. She tries to impress her teacher who takes control of her feelings. The characters I did like in this book because they were all different. Each character had a certain role to play in the book like the mom is the overprotective mother hen, her friend is the one who gets her out of her shell kind of, etc.

This is one of those books where kids can learn that they don't need to impress others but themselves. It's a book that you can talk to your parents with. This book was interesting and I recommend it to those who like coming-of-age novels.


CONTENT WARNING: explicit but nongraphic sexual content, rape, racist and slut-shaming

Criteria
Plot- ⭐⭐⭐⭐★
Main Character- ⭐⭐⭐★★
Other Characters- ⭐⭐⭐⭐★
Writing Style- ⭐⭐⭐★★
Positive Vibes- ⭐⭐⭐★★
Pacing- ⭐⭐⭐⭐★
Ending- ⭐⭐⭐⭐★

Book Cover- ⭐⭐⭐⭐★
*This book was given to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

Private Lessons: Welcome Post

Private Lessons by Cynthia Salaysay
Publisher: Candlewick Press
Genre: YA realistic, coming of age
Age: 16+

Summary:
After seventeen-year-old Claire Alalay’s father's death, only music has helped her channel her grief. Claire likes herself best when she plays his old piano, a welcome escape from the sadness — and her traditional Filipino mother’s prayer groups. In the hopes of earning a college scholarship, Claire auditions for Paul Avon, a prominent piano teacher, who agrees to take Claire as a pupil. Soon Claire loses herself in Paul’s world and his way of digging into a composition’s emotional core. She practices constantly, foregoing a social life, but no matter how hard she works or how well she plays, it seems impossible to gain Paul’s approval, let alone his affection.


Author Cynthia Salaysay composes a moving, beautifully written portrait of rigorous perfectionism, sexual awakening, and the challenges of self-acceptance. Timely and vital, Private Lessons delves into a complicated student/teacher relationship, as well as class and cultural differences, with honesty and grace. (Goodreads)


About the Author:
Cynthia Salaysay holds a bachelor’s degree in English from University of California, Berkeley, and has workshopped her fiction at Tin House. She has written food and culture articles for the San Francisco Examiner, the San Francisco Bay Guardian, the East Bay Express, and Civil Eats. Currently, she works as a Reiki practitioner and an operating-room nurse in Oakland, California. Private Lessons is her first novel. (Goodreads)

Private Lessons: Book Trailer