THE PEKING EXPRESS The Bandits Who Stole a Train, Stunned the West, and Broke the Republic of China

The author's initial commentary on the safety of night travel creates foreboding as David Shih narrates the story of the famous hijacking of a train between Shanghai and Peking in 1923. Shih builds intensity from the first skirmish as bandits fire on the train. His tone softens as he describes swallows that flew through the camp where the hostages, including many Westerners, were held. He gives the scene in which they sing "Hail, Hail, The Gang's All Here" the bolstering feeling it must have had at the time, and he provides a light touch amid the chaos during an encounter between several bandits and two American women. This thorough re-creation creates sympathy for those on all sides of the dramatic historical event. J.A.S. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2023]