In nineteenth-century China, in a remote Hunan county, a girl named Lily, at the tender age of seven, is paired with a laotong, or "old same," in an emotional match that will last a lifetime. Snow Flower introduces herself by sending Lily a silk fan on which she has wirtten a poem in nu shu, a unique language that Chinese women created in order to communicate in secret, away from the influence of men. The two find solace, developing a bond that keeps...

""I finally understand what the poets have written. In spring, moved to passion; in autumn, only regret." For young Peony, betrothed to a suitor she has never met, these lyrics from The Peony Pavilion mirror her own longings. In the garden of the Chen Family Villa, amid the scent of ginger, green tea, and jasmine, a small theatrical troupe is performing scenes from this epic opera, a live spectacle few females have ever seen. Like the heroine in the...

Ray Waller, a former major league baseball player is forced into early retirement by a degenerative illness, moves into a new home with his concerned wife Eve, teenage daughter Izzy, and young son Elliot. Secretly hoping, against the odds, to return to pro ball, Ray persuades Eve that the new home's shimmering backyard swimming pool will be fun for the kids and provide physical therapy for him. But a dark secret in the home's past will unleash an...

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