The Lius of Shanghai /Sherman Cochran, Andrew Hsieh.

Includes bibliographies and index.

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Introduction -- 1 Parents Who Dreamed of a Business Dynasty -- 2 Sons Who Tried for Admission to Cambridge -- 3 Sons Who Did Not Want to Become British Citizens -- 4 A Son Who Wanted to Drop Out of Harvard -- 5 A Son Who Was Sick -- 6 A Son Who Proposed Marriage to a Westernized Woman -- 7 A Daughter Who Spoiled a Marriage Alliance -- 8 Sons Who Became Leaders in War time -- 9 A Son Who Joined the Communists -- 10 A Son Who Battled Depression -- 11 Mother's Struggle to Save Her Marriage -- 12 The Family's Postwar Disunion and Reunion -- 13 Father's Decision to Live in the People's Republic -- 14 A Daughter Who Forged Family Alliances -- 15 A Son Who Refused to Return to China -- 16 Parents' Deaths and Children's Dispersal -- Conclusion -- Archives and Works Cited -- Notes -- Acknoledgments -- Index.

From the Sino-Japanese War to the Communist Revolution, a cache of letters from one of China's prominent families, the Lius of Shanghai, sheds light on a tumultuous era. Sherman Cochran and Andrew Hsieh show how the family confronted war, civil unrest, and social upheaval, and how--in the midst of it all--they built a vast business empire.

From the Sino-Japanese War to the Communist Revolution, the onrushing narrative of modern China can drown out the stories of the people who lived it. Yet a remarkable cache of letters from one of China's most prominent and influential families, the Lius of Shanghai, sheds new light on this tumultuous era. Sherman Cochran and Andrew Hsieh take us inside the Lius' world to explore how the family laid the foundation for a business dynasty before the war and then confronted the challenges of war, civil unrest, and social upheaval. Cochran and Hsieh gained access to a rare collection containing a lifetime of letters exchanged by the patriarch, Liu Hongsheng, his wife, Ye Suzhen, and their twelve children. Their correspondence offers a fascinating look at how a powerful family navigated the treacherous politics of the period. They discuss sensitive issues--should the family collaborate with the Japanese occupiers? should it flee after the communist takeover?--as well as intimate domestic matters like marital infidelity. They also describe the agonies of wartime separation, protracted battles for control of the family firm, and the parents' struggle to maintain authority in the face of swiftly changing values. Through it all, the distinctive voices of the Lius shine through. Cochran and Hsieh's engaging prose reveals how each member of the family felt the ties that bound them together. More than simply a portrait of a memorable family, The Lius of Shanghai tells the saga of modern China from the inside out.

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