Port of Last Resort - by Marcia Reynders Ristaino (Paperback)

The Port of Last Resort is a groundbreaking book that sheds light on two large and overlooked diaspora communities in Shanghai during the tumultuous first half of the 20th century.

Victims of discrimination and persecution in their homelands, these communities found refuge in Shanghai due to its open port policy and lack of documentation requirements.

Despite facing severe political, social, economic, and cultural challenges, they managed to form communities, preserve their national identities, choose leaders, find employment, cope with the alien Chinese culture, educate and raise their children, and establish a considerable presence in the city. The book provides an in-depth examination of the experiences and responses of these diaspora groups during World War II under Japanese occupation and the Chinese Communist takeover in 1949.

It also explores how they handled the new challenges they faced and where they finally found refuge.

With a focus on the particulars of the Shanghai experience, the story of these communities resonates with today's accounts of societies in conflict, dislocated populations, and struggles to survive and sustain life under trying conditions. The Port of Last Resort is an essential read for anyone interested in diaspora studies, twentieth-century Chinese history, urban history, or simply understanding the stories of those who found refuge in Shanghai during this time period.

Marcia Ristaino's meticulous and fascinating research makes use of Chinese, Japanese, German, Russian, and English sources to describe the survival of a refugee community that once numbered over 50,000 people.

With its thorough examination of the experiences of these two diaspora populations, this book provides a fresh and valuable addition to the growing scholarship