Last boat out of Shanghai : the epic story of the Chinese who fled Mao's revolution / Helen Zia.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Zia, Helen, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Emigration and immigration.

History.

Chinese--Foreign countries.

Political refugees.

Refugees.

China--History--Civil War, 1945-1949--Refugees.

China.

Political refugees--China--History--20th century.

Chinese--Foreign countries--History--20th century.

Chinese.

China--Emigration and immigration--History--20th century.

Shanghai (China)--History--20th century.

Shanghai (China).

China--Shanghai.

HISTORY / Asia / China.

BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Personal Memoirs.

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Refugees.

Local Subjects:

HISTORY / Asia / China.

BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / Personal Memoirs.

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Refugees.

Genre:

Nonfiction.

History.

Physical Description:

xxix, 499 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : Ballantine Books, [2019]

Summary:

"The dramatic, real-life stories of four young people caught up in the mass exodus of Shanghai in the wake of China's 1949 Communist Revolution--a precursor to the struggles faced by emigrants today. Shanghai has historically been China's jewel, its richest, most modern and westernized city. The bustling metropolis was home to sophisticated intellectuals, entrepreneurs, and a thriving middle class when Mao's proletarian revolution emerged victorious from the long civil war. Terrified of the horrors the Communists would wreak upon their lives, citizens of Shanghai who could afford to fled in every direction. Seventy years later, the last generation to fully recall this massive exodus have opened the story to Chinese American journalist Helen Zia, who interviewed hundreds of exiles about their journey through one of the most tumultuous events of the twentieth century. From these moving accounts, Zia weaves the story of four young Shanghai residents who wrestled with the decision to abandon everything for an uncertain life as refugees in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the U.S. Young Benny, who as a teenager became the unwilling heir to his father's dark wartime legacy, must choose between escaping Hong Kong or navigating the intricacies of a newly Communist China. The resolute Annuo, forced to flee her home with her father, a defeated Nationalist official, becomes an unwelcome young exile in Taiwan. The financially strapped Ho fights deportation in order to continue his studies in the U.S. while his family struggles at home. And Bing, given away by her poor parents, faces the prospect of a new life among strangers in America" -- Provided by publisher.

"The dramatic, real-life stories of four young people caught up in the mass exodus of Shanghai in the wake of China's 1949 Communist Revolution--a precursor to the struggles faced by emigrants today. Shanghai has historically been China's jewel, its richest, most modern and westernized city. The bustling metropolis was home to sophisticated intellectuals, entrepreneurs, and a thriving middle class when Mao's proletarian revolution emerged victorious from the long civil war. Terrified of the horrors the Communists would wreak upon their lives, citizens of Shanghai who could afford to fled in every direction. Seventy years later, the last generation to fully recall this massive exodus have opened the story to Chinese American journalist Helen Zia, who interviewed hundreds of exiles about their journey through one of the most tumultuous events of the twentieth century. From these moving accounts, Zia weaves the story of four young Shanghai residents who wrestled with the decision to abandon everything for anuncertain life as refugees in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the U.S. Young Benny, who as a teenager became the unwilling heir to his father's dark wartime legacy, must choose between escaping Hong Kong or navigating the intricacies of a newly Communist China. The resolute Annuo, forced to flee her home with her father, a defeated Nationalist official, becomes an unwelcome young exile in Taiwan. The financially strapped Ho fights deportation in order to continue his studies in the U.S. while his family strugglesat home. And Bing, given away by her poor parents, faces the prospect of a new life among strangers in America" -- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

The Drumbeat of war

Childhood under siege

Exodus

War's long shadow.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 461-476) and index.

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Keyes Fund bookplate.

ISBN:

9780345522320

034552232X

OCLC:

1033650511