Long saga about the city and it's opening up to other settlers and the history of China in 19th century through the vehicle of a story of the influence of ancestors and mythology. A really interesting way to thread history through personal stories. Three large books with about 30 chapters each but tightly woven. Good read. ( )

This was a thrilling, exhilarating ride! Rotenberg combines theme, character, and location in a powerful splendour of historical fiction that borders right on the literary sphere. I was very impressed with the book and it has some great writing, parts, and scenes that- all together, make up a comprehensive, decisive victory of reading.

Recommended for those interested in historical and literary fiction. ( )

This is a rather long fictional history of China. All in all it was a good story though you have to slog through the first 150 pages to get to any meaty story. So stay the course, and fly through several hundreds of years with chapters that are only 2-3 pages long with forgettable characters until you arrive at the birth of Shanghai and the opium trade.

You will live the lives of two Jewish brothers from Iraq and how they and their offspring build an empire in Shanghai. You will follow a fictional compact of four Chinese professions and a relic that foretells of China falling into darkness and of coming into the light, with the book ending with Mao so there is no end in that prophecy. The last 150 pages or so are like the first 100 pages and they seem anti-climatic to me...again with the 1-3 page chapters and names that become confusing at times as generations pass on the same names.

The history as told is probably correct but very sketchy in detail. But then then you go through a couple of thousand years. I never really felt that the city as such changed much as I read it. It certainly does not make me like my WASP heritage to see how Asians were exploited. Except for the first and last 150 pages it was a pretty good read though. ( )

Written by Canadian author David Rotenberg, Shanghai retells the amazing story of the building and development of the great Chinese city.

In 207 BC, the First Emperor entrusts three people with the Prophecy of the Ivory Compact; the Confucian, the Concubine, and the Bodyguard. Those three people's descendants will also carry that burden until said prophecy is revealed.
Centuries later, these descendants observe as Shanghai is invaded by opium traders from all over Europe, then the world. Two of the most powerful opium trading companies, which will become vital to the city's development, will engage in a multi-generational rivalry, and will do anything to get what they want.

As the novel goes on, history and prophecy do as well. Locals and foreign forces intertwine, and their combined fates shape what will become Shanghai as we now know it.

Although the story is evidently fictional, every page of the book is saturated with detail and historical facts and references; it's quite obvious that David Rotenberg has put much of his time and energy reaserching for this novel. The reader will also get a glimpse at Chinese history and culture.

While the book is magnificently written, one cannot but notice the odd fast-forwards that occur regularly throughout the novel. Also, the phrase that Rotenberg uses to denote change; "the smell of ozone in the air", is used much too often, and gets old much before the end of the story.

Shanghai, all in all, is a very good historical novel. However, it requires some suspension of disbelief to fully grasp it. Once you ignore the fact that it can at times be very heavy, it is quite enjoyable. ( )