{"product_id":"2026600000551-secondhand-a-handful-of-pennies","title":"A Handful Of Pennies","description":"\u003cp\u003eEdition: 1st ed.,\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good                          \u003cbr\u003eJacket: Wear and tear\u003cbr\u003ePages: Good                  \u003cbr\u003eMarkings: No markings\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA landmark work of Australian autobiographical fiction, A Handful of Pennies chronicles Hal Porter's years spent teaching in occupied Japan in the late 1940s, offering a vivid and unflinching portrait of a nation rebuilding itself from the ruins of war. With his characteristically ornate and precise prose, Porter presents the cultural collision between Australian sensibility and Japanese tradition with both sharp wit and deep empathy. The narrative uncovers the complexities of the occupation — the uneasy power dynamics, the resilience of the Japanese people, and the peculiar isolation felt by foreigners navigating a world of profound difference. Porter's keen observational eye transforms personal memoir into a broader meditation on identity, displacement, and the strange intimacies that emerge between conqueror and conquered. Rich in atmospheric detail and psychological insight, it stands as one of the most distinctive and accomplished works in the Australian literary canon.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48792284135643,"sku":"2026600000551-SECONDHAND","price":25.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/86e44fc7-1e65-41ab-a631-f97bc44a9f50.png?v=1779274631","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026600000551-secondhand-a-handful-of-pennies","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}