Pearl Swine is a violinist, but not a professional in her standing. She works at a music shop with other musicians and teaches children. Her husband left her for a younger student he taught at UCLA.

The characters are interesting, but only on a superficial L.A. level. I'm not sure if this is what the author meant to do. If so she did a superb job. I felt sorry for them as they left me sad they're only living half lives.

The relationship Pearl has with one of her student's struck me as pathetic and not at all as a 40 year old woman should behave. Though the character does mention that. But she doesn't seem to delve into it much or seem to want to correct it.

It was an easy quick read and I liked the honest abruptness of Pearl which is what kept me reading and I liked the areas of intellectualism as well....but, there wasn't much growth of the characters and they felt like empty shells of human beings just going through the motions, to me. ( )

Pearl Swain is recently divorced and living alone in a trailer park in LA where she works at McCoy’s music store among a host of male colleagues, and gives violin lessons. It’s a dead-end place where musicians without careers in music congregate.

Franklin, the owner, wants to start a band and recruits Pearl. On their first gig, he abandons her for a female agent – a siren – who woos him away from Pearl.

Craig is 20 years younger than Pearl, gets fired, and becomes her lover.

Patrick is a mysterious physicist who burnt out and says he can play all instruments and none of them. To him, music is just math.

One day, Pearl acquires an amazingly talented student, Hallie. But she is also troubled, and Pearl deciphers that Hallie uses her lessons to escape an abusive foster father whose price for letting her go to lessons is sex. Pearl attempts to rescue Hallie from her fate and is determined to see that Hallie has a musical career – something she, Pearl, never achieved. But Pearl learns that her dreams are not Hallie's, and her attempts to intervene on Hallie’s behalf have unintended and disastrous consequences.

Original characters, lots of interesting insight into the technique of violin playing, and a lesson about no good deed goes unpunished. Enjoyable story that’s easy to read; provides entertainment plus is informative; and is completed by a satisfying but ambiguous conclusion. Hall doesn’t tie up the loose ends, doesn’t give her book a Hollywood ending in spite of an LA story. For which I'm grateful. ( )

This book appealed to me because I am an amateur musician and I used to work in a music store. Though this store, and the relationships between the various people who worked in the store, were quite different from my music store experience, I found it interesting.

I was disappointed that the teacher's relationship with her student became secondary to her relationship with her younger lover. Such is life, I suppose, but to me, this romantic element made this into an ordinary novel.

I enjoyed The Music Teacher particularly the relationship betweenPearl and Hallie. I could relate to Pearl's frustrations at not being able to achieve her dream and through time helping Hallie realize hers. It was a quick read and a very enjoyable one

Is a teacher acting for the good of a student or for vicarious gain? If one has been betrayed how do you learn trust? What is the nature of music and the people who need to play it? And, can a 40 year old woman find sexual satisfaction and love with a twenty seven year old "hunk"? All these questions are explored in this short and soulful novel. ( )