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Summary: Some good points, but poorly written.
Review: Albeit this book carries a nice concept, the play itself is tedious and ill-written. A short read..but nothing remarkable.
Rating: 
Summary: August Wilson outdid himself, this writing was superb
Review: August is awesome. That is the only thing that I can say about this writing. He outdid himself, the book and the characters were both lovable and believeable. I knew each and everyone of those characters they were my fami
Rating: 
Summary: Heirloom and heritage
Review: August Wilson's play "The Piano Lesson" won the 1990 Pulitzer Prize for drama, and is one of several works that have established Wilson as a major figure in the American theater. While there is much that is admirable in the play, I think it is one of those works that probably needs to be seen, rather than read in book form. As a book, I found it an oddly uninvolving read."Lesson" is about the conflict in an African-American family over an heirloom piano, decorated with carvings, that dates back to the slavery era. This may be one of the play's problems as a reader's text: it relies heavily on a visual element which needs the collaboration of a skilled prop master. Still, "The Piano Lesson" has many elements which make it worthwhile in book form. The playwright brings up such compelling issues as African-American land ownership, economic independence, and family heritage. And much of the dialogue is quite sharp. Give it a try.
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Summary: A perfectly crafted masterpiece
Review: August Wilson's subtly brilliant work examines the manner in which an African-American family copes with its past. The central character of the play--the piano--is a pictoral history of the family, carved by a woodcarving ancestor from the families slavery days. The fascinating confrontation between Berniece, who cherishes the piano, and Boy Willie, who wishes to sell the piano and use the profit to buy the land their family tilled as slaves, gives the reader a thought-provoking dilemma. Should one cling to the past or use it to make one's future? Although it seems Berniece is right, there is something in Boy Willie's exuberant pursuit of the American dream that makes the reader respect and enjoy his character, despite his imperfections. Mr. Wilson succeeds in creating characters with virtues, flaws and noble goals with which we can relate. Trumancaro@aol.com
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty Good
Review: Had to read this book for an English Class. Quite interesting. About multicultural oppurtunities in the 1930's. Characters are well developed, story-line is slightly...boring?? Maybe boring isn't the word, but there is a lot of whoop-la for a mere lesson to be learned. Suggested book with an open-mind.
Rating:
Summary: It was good but not his best.
Review: I feel he could have added more to the play. If this play was a meal it would be meatloaf and potatoes. See without the gravy and vegetables and maybe even dessert its not a full meal now is it?
Rating:
Summary: Amazing
Review: I loved the Piano Lesson. I couldn't put it down. If you like this, make sure you read Wilson's Joe Turner's Come and Gone.
Rating:
Summary: Ho-Hum
Review: I think that this book had the possibility to be an amazing read, but I found it missing some very key parts, especially character development. The ending was also a let-down, it was too easy to see that it was quite shallow and happened without any obvious reason.
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Summary: Alice Walker's "Everyday Use?"
Review: If you've read that famous, oft-anthologized short story, you'll get the idea of this play. The tapestry in that short story serves the same purpose as the piano in this one. I enjoyed some passages in this play, especially the ones related to the importance of ownership of land as a step toward dignity and self-determination. But - is it just me, or is August a little overrated? (P.S. - I am white.)
Rating:
Summary: A lot of words for a ghost story
Review: In August Wilson's play, "The Piano Lesson", there are some good points and there are some bad points, but mostly boring points. The story just did not seem to be able to keep my attention.
I will discuss the parts that i thought were good first. I thought that August Wilson described the piano and its carvings on it extremely beautifully. The way he portrays the family's heritage within the piano is fantastic. What i especially loved was the symbolism of the stealing of the piano. He had made it seem like that if Sutter still had the piano, that the Charles family would still be bound to him. But on INDEPENDENCE DAY(!) they stole the piano from him, thus symbolically liberating the family. The stealing of the piano gives an extra significance for the Charles family to July fourth.
The beginning and the end of the play were very interesting. They were easily the most exciting parts of the book. I found it interesting to find out about the history of the family and how the piano was sacred to them. The end surprised me. I never expected Willie to get into a fight with the ghost of Sutter.
Now for the boring parts. Well, saying that the beginning and the end of the play were the most exciting, actually isn't saying a whole lot. The book just could not hold my attention at all. The only interesting points were the first and last ten pages. The 80 pages in the middle all seemed to have the same theme. That theme was that Willie and Berniece would get into an argument over the piano, then a few pages down the road it would be the same argument all over again. The other events that occured within the middle of the play seemed very insignificant. Lymon seemed to me like an unimportant character that could have been eliminated. Grace had no importance at all, but to fill up pages within the book.
"The Piano Lesson" seemed to me to be a very boring book at many points, although it did have its bright spots. This would make a much better short story than a play or a long book.
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