The Old Shanghai A-Z – Cover Sneak Preview

OK, so this is essentially a plug for a forthcoming book from me. The Old Shanghai A-Z (published later this year by Hong Kong University Press) is a fairly simple confection – a complete listing of all the old (pre-1949)  road names of Shanghai’s International Settlement, French Concession and External Roads Area. It’s all indexed from old to new and vice versa and lavishly (and I mean lavishly) illustrated with old advertising, ephemera from Shanghai and pictures along with a mass of anecdotes and factoids on the streets of old Shanghai. And it comes with a detailed 1947 map of Shanghai, the last authoritative one to include the old street names. The Old Shanghai A-Z should be available in late October/November – i.e. in plenty of time for Christmas and the perfect present for that dreamy Shanghailander in your life who pines for 1936. Here’s the cover which I’m very pleased with.