At the beginning of the 20th century China experienced a monumental upheaval with the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911 followed by Sun Yat-Sen's short lived republic and the eventual occupation by the Japanese in 1937. At the same time there was an extraordinary confluence of people from many different countries, cultures, and social classes coming together in Shanghai and Peking: the inhabitants of the international settlements and the battle between the Great Powers for influence and control; the White Russians fleeing the Bolshevik revolution; and European Jews fleeing the rise of fascism. This period has always fascinated me and I would love to explore it more with you by reading a selection of fiction and non fiction as well as books written by both western and Chinese authors, including classic and contemporary writers.