WHITE SHANGHAI A Novel of the Roaring Twenties in China

Listeners who love history will find much to admire in the rich detail and extensive research in this novel. Those who don't have an interest in the 1920s, China, or its intersection with Russian culture may find this title hard going. Narrator Jason Damron's sentences are delivered with the same degree of emphasis, making them atonal when listened to for long stretches. It's difficult to differentiate between the narrative and the dialogue because of his unrelenting pace--there's barely a pause between sentences. His rapid-fire delivery is reminiscent of an evening news report--the kind one would have heard on the radio in the era of the novel's setting. M.R. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2013]