Description

Anna, the narrator of the captivating first book, lives in a storybook world: unique pre- World War II Shanghai, with fine young parents, prosperity, and convenience. Although his greatest happiness is sharing his precious town together with his only child, her dad, the child of missionaries, leads a charmed and deceptive existence. However when Anna and her mother flee Japanese-occupied Shanghai to come back to California, he remains behind, thinking his contacts and a bit of luck could keep him secure. Through her dad's publications and Anna's recollections we discover of his drop from charming billionaire to tortured captive, in a tale of reconciliation and betrayal that spans two continents.