New Shanghai: The Rocky Rebirth of China's Legendary City

A compelling account of the rebirth of China's greatest city. Earmarked by China's leaders to again become an international business hub, Shanghai, in less than a decade, has blossomed from a depressed industrial town, forgotten by the outside world, into a shimmering metropolis filled with glass skyscrapers, modern factories, and thumping discotheques. Foreign investors are once again flocking to Shanghai, which is commonly seen as an up--and--coming rival to New York, Tokyo, and Hong Kong as the world's most important financial centers. But is it? Is Shanghai, the capitalist Mecca of the Far East in the 1920s, re--emerging as the New York of Asia? The Whore of the Orient? The stomping ground of China's artistic elite? China's version of Silicon Valley? A tinderbox of social unrest as state--owned companies lay off workers by the hundreds of thousands? Weaving insightful anecdotes with astute analysis, respected journalist Pamela Yatsko addresses these questions and many others to provide a vivid portrait of Shanghai, past and present. New Shanghai's lively narrative, culled from interviews with Shanghainese at all levels of society, explores key aspects of contemporary Shanghai ---- from finance, foreign business and state enterprise reform, to vice, culture and social change. New Shanghai takes us into the world of shady Chinese stock speculators, prosperous yuppies, distraught laid--off workers, determined foreign executives and alluring bar girls, giving texture to the tumult that has rocked urban China. By painting pictures of Shanghai today, New Shanghai offers readers a better understanding of Shanghai and China tomorrow.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgements. Dedication. 1. Introduction: The Allure of Shanghai. 2. Building the New Shanghai. 3. New York of Asia? 4. The "Haves" and the "Have--nots". 5. Search for a Soul. 6. Return of the Vices. 7. Return of the Foreigners. 8. Made in Shanghai. 9. Conclusion: Waiting for Shanghai.

About the Author :
Pamela Yatsko was the Far Eastern Economic Review's first Shanghai correspondent and bureau chief since the Chinese Communist Revolution in 1949. She lived in Shanghai with her husband from 1995 to 1998 before moving to Hong Kong and returning to the city frequently. An American from Massachusetts, she received her Bachelor's Degree from Smith College in 1984 and her Master's Degree specializing in China Studies and International Economics from the John Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in 1988. Before joining the Review in 1994, she was the Managing Editor of Hong Kong--based Business China, an Economist Group publication, worked as a freelance journalist in India, and wrote case studies focusing on global strategic alliances for Harvard Business School. She studied Mandarin in the 1980s in Taiwan and at the Hopkins Center in Nanjing, China. She and her husband currently live in Mill Valley, California.