Summary

“Every Good Boy” by David Nicholls tells the story of a nine-year-old boy, who starts teaching himself to play the piano after his father brings one home, an old machine discarded by some pub owner. The boy starts playing the piano because by the age of nine he has not found any activity that he is good at, to the disappointment of his parents. Initially, the boy learns some TV shows and movie tunes by himself, exasperating his family members because of his poor skills. Eventually, the parents decide that the boy should take piano lessons and hire a neighbour from across the street, Mrs Patricia Chin, a widow in her seventies. As the months pass, the boy-narrator fails to show any talent as a pianist, tormenting both his teacher and parents...