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Last Boat Out of Shanghai: The Epic Story of the Chinese Who Fled Mao's Revolution by Helen Zia
jmutschler88's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent and historically informative book following the lives of four refugees from Shanghai. I found I was able to connect to each refugee and their story, and that the order of events as presented was not hard to follow. It strikes me that the plight of the Chinese people in WWII and the Communist revolution has been rather excluded from lessons in "World History", and that this was a new and exciting point-of-view to read about. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to expand their knowledge regarding world history and the plight of refugees. Perhaps it will make you a more open-minded and empathetic person.
mcox2016's review against another edition
5.0
VIPKid Bookworms Book Club April 2021
This book was my choice for the month of April and voted on by the group and accepted. This real life story of 4 children growing up through the communist transition in China really opened my eyes to a lot of issues I have heard my students mention, but didn't fully understand the history behind it. I never understood why many of my students say they hate Japan, or that Taiwan is a Chinese territory.
This book follows 4 people's lives during the revolution and upheaval of the Nationalists and take over of Mao. Many families were separated, often never reuniting. Children were abandoned, adopted by random strangers, and sometimes sent off to other cities to work to provide for the family. Some traveled to other countries on scholarships and hopes of the America dream. Some were imprisoned for their beliefs.
Amazing history of Shanghai and China after WWII and what families went through to survive.
You can purchase the book here -
https://amzn.to/3ysHNkz
This book was my choice for the month of April and voted on by the group and accepted. This real life story of 4 children growing up through the communist transition in China really opened my eyes to a lot of issues I have heard my students mention, but didn't fully understand the history behind it. I never understood why many of my students say they hate Japan, or that Taiwan is a Chinese territory.
This book follows 4 people's lives during the revolution and upheaval of the Nationalists and take over of Mao. Many families were separated, often never reuniting. Children were abandoned, adopted by random strangers, and sometimes sent off to other cities to work to provide for the family. Some traveled to other countries on scholarships and hopes of the America dream. Some were imprisoned for their beliefs.
Amazing history of Shanghai and China after WWII and what families went through to survive.
You can purchase the book here -
https://amzn.to/3ysHNkz
greatlibraryofalexandra's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Enthralling and emotional account of this 'controversial' history of Shanghai's history. Reading this as a white foreigner currently living in the former French Concession that features so heavily in many parts of this book was surreal and humbling.
Zia's writing is clear and concise but gripping, and the stories she chose to highlight and follow were all so unique and expressive. This book was able to distill so much expansive history into a handful of deeply personal stories, while also whetting the appetite for learning more, and never forgetting that the story of refugees fleeing in conflict is universal, communal, and ever relevant. The narratives brought me to tears several times, particularly as I began to unravel and understand Zia's particular personal connection to the book.
What I also found spectacular here was the way so much complex Chinese political history was made accessible by presenting it through the eyes of the people it affected. It was certainly not academically dense, but it did give a layperson a foundation of the intense complexity that was at play, and a lot of that had to do with the diversity of experience/backgrounds each character brought to the table. The only reason I am giving it 4 stars is because there were a few chapters where it relied heavily on letters from the past, and I found it a jarring break from Zia's voice in a way that hampered the rhythm of the story and let me dip into boredom - but other than that, just a phenomenal tale that never loses sight of both the micro and macro experiences of the reverberating effects of mass displacement.
Zia's writing is clear and concise but gripping, and the stories she chose to highlight and follow were all so unique and expressive. This book was able to distill so much expansive history into a handful of deeply personal stories, while also whetting the appetite for learning more, and never forgetting that the story of refugees fleeing in conflict is universal, communal, and ever relevant. The narratives brought me to tears several times, particularly as I began to unravel and understand Zia's particular personal connection to the book.
What I also found spectacular here was the way so much complex Chinese political history was made accessible by presenting it through the eyes of the people it affected. It was certainly not academically dense, but it did give a layperson a foundation of the intense complexity that was at play, and a lot of that had to do with the diversity of experience/backgrounds each character brought to the table. The only reason I am giving it 4 stars is because there were a few chapters where it relied heavily on letters from the past, and I found it a jarring break from Zia's voice in a way that hampered the rhythm of the story and let me dip into boredom - but other than that, just a phenomenal tale that never loses sight of both the micro and macro experiences of the reverberating effects of mass displacement.
janjem's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting look into China’s history by following personal stories.
nickstarr's review against another edition
4.0
3.75/5 - I had trouble getting started but it improved by the end.
This book tells the stories of four Chinese people and their exoduses from Shanghai as the Communists took control post-WWII. I expected something akin to The Warmth of Other Suns: a mixture of oral history and broader sociological commentary.
Instead, the vast majority of this book is in a highly narrative style, so that it feels like reading a novel. It’s full of impossibly specific details about what people said, their expressions and movements, etc, with no indication that it’s the result of interviews and recollections decades later. Some might find the style engaging and relatable, but personally I found it off-putting and almost gave it up.
However, the last third or so of the book picks up and gives broader view of China and the world alongside the personal stories, which satisfied what I’d been looking for originally.
I did learn quite a lot and I enjoyed it by the end, but if you’re like me, be aware that the style might be a slog.
This book tells the stories of four Chinese people and their exoduses from Shanghai as the Communists took control post-WWII. I expected something akin to The Warmth of Other Suns: a mixture of oral history and broader sociological commentary.
Instead, the vast majority of this book is in a highly narrative style, so that it feels like reading a novel. It’s full of impossibly specific details about what people said, their expressions and movements, etc, with no indication that it’s the result of interviews and recollections decades later. Some might find the style engaging and relatable, but personally I found it off-putting and almost gave it up.
However, the last third or so of the book picks up and gives broader view of China and the world alongside the personal stories, which satisfied what I’d been looking for originally.
I did learn quite a lot and I enjoyed it by the end, but if you’re like me, be aware that the style might be a slog.
ashkitty93's review against another edition
5.0
Helen Zia presents four compelling storylines and the ways in which a portion of China's 20th century history - picking up in 1937 and extending into the 1950s (plus a good-size epilogue which goes even further) - affected each of their lives.
Well narrated by Nancy Wu. I'm still wrapping my brain around the scope of this book, because there's a LOT in here. The idea to ground history in individual stories (or did she ground the individual stories in history?) was an excellent one, and I'll certainly be on the lookout for more of Helen Zia's work in the future. Incredibly written.
Well narrated by Nancy Wu. I'm still wrapping my brain around the scope of this book, because there's a LOT in here. The idea to ground history in individual stories (or did she ground the individual stories in history?) was an excellent one, and I'll certainly be on the lookout for more of Helen Zia's work in the future. Incredibly written.