Join us to hear two beloved local authors\ , Susan Blumberg-Kason and Cristina Henrí\;quez\, in conversation di scussing their new and forthcoming books\, the research process for writin g historical stories\, and so much more. This event is in celebration of S usan's new work\, Bernardine&rsquo\;s Shanghai Salon. Copies will be available for checkout starting November 7th. Keep an eye out for Cris tina's forthcoming book in Spring 2024.
\nWe will have copies of Bernardine's Shanghai Salon for sale during the event! You can also purchase a copy of either author's books in advance. Look for Susan's book s here and Cristina's books here. We will also raffle of f 5 copies of Bernardine's Shanghai Salon during the event.
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Susan Blumberg-Kason
\nSusan Blumberg-Kason is the author of \;Bernardine&rsquo\;s Shang hai Salon: The Story of the Doyenne of Old China \;and \; Good Chinese Wife: A Love Affair with China Gone Wrong. She is also t he co-editor of \;Hong Kong Noir. Susan is a regular contribu tor to the \;Asian Review of Books \;and \;Cha: An Asian Liter ary Journal. \;Her work has also appeared in the \;Los Angeles Rev iew of Books\, \;World Literature Today\, PopMatters\, \;and the&n bsp\;South China Morning Post. She received an MPhil in Government and Pub lic Administration from the Chinese University of Hong Kong\, where she re searched provincial assemblies in the late Qing dynasty. She was born\, ra ised\, and is now based in the Chicago suburbs.
\nCristina H enrí\;quez
\nCristina Henrí\;quez is the author of The Book of Unknown Americans\, which was a New York Times No table Book of 2014 and one of Amazon&rsquo\;s 10 Best Books of the Year. I t was the Daily Beast Novel of the Year\, a Washington Post \;Notable Book\, \;an NPR Great Read\, a Target Book of the Month selection\, an d was chosen one of the best books of the year by BookPage\, Oprah.com\, a nd School Library Journal. It was also longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction and was a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize.
\nHenriquez is also the author The World In Half (a novel)\, and Come Together\, Fall Apart: A Novella and Stories< /em>\, which was a New York Times \;Editors&rsquo\; Choice selection. Her forthcoming novel\, The Great Divide\, about the building of the Panama Canal\, will be published in 2024.
\n\nBer nardine's Shanghai Salon: The Story of the Doyenne of Old China\n
Meet the Jewish salon host in 1930s Shanghai who brought togeth er Chinese and expats around the arts as civil war erupted and World War I I loomed on the horizon.
\nBernardine Szold Fritz arrived in Sh anghai in 1929 to marry her fourth husband. Only thirty-three years old\, she found herself in a time and place like no other. Political intrigue an d scandal lurked on every street corner. Art Deco cinemas showed the lates t Hollywood flicks\, while dancehall owners and jazz musicians turned Shan ghai into Asia&rsquo\;s top nightlife destination.
\nYet from the ni ght of their wedding\, Bernardine&rsquo\;s new husband did not live up to his promises. Instead of feeling sorry for herself or leaving Shanghai\, B ernardine decided to make a place for herself. Like other Jewish women bef ore her\, she started a salon in her home\, drawing famous names from the world of politics\, the arts\, and the intelligentsia. She introduced Emil y Hahn\, the charismatic opium-smoking writer for \;The New Yorker\, t o the flamboyant hotelier Sir Victor Sassoon and legendary poet Sinmay Zau . And when Hollywood stars Anna May Wong\, Charlie Chaplin\, and Claudette Colbert passed through Shanghai\, Bernardine organized gatherings to intr oduce them to their Shanghai contemporaries.
\nWhen Bernardine&rsquo \;s salon could not accommodate all who wanted to attend\, she founded the International Arts Theater to produce avant-garde plays\, ballets\, lectu res\, and visual arts exhibits\, often pushing audiences beyond their comf ort zones. As civil war brewed and World War II soon followed\, Bernardine &rsquo\;s devotion to the arts and the people of Shanghai brought joy to t he city just before it would change forever.
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