THE LAST ROSE OF SHANGHAI

Narrators Emily Woo Zeller and Josh Bloomberg jointly perform this novel primarily set in Shanghai during the Japanese occupation of 1937-1945. Zeller delivers the chapters told from the perspective of Aiyi, whose privileged upbringing, beauty, and good business sense are not enough to protect her from the hardships of war. Bloomberg performs the chapters focused on Ernest, a German-Jewish refugee who arrives in the city looking for a safe haven. Zeller's comfort with Asian languages and accents and Bloomberg's with European ones underscore Aiyi's and Ernest's divergent spheres. Together the narrators build on the couple's conflicted emotions as their relationship grows from being business associates to much more. This audiobook touches on the unexplored Jewish community in Shanghai and the difficulties of engaging in cross-cultural relationships at that time. C.B.L. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2021]