THANKS FOR JOINING ME ON FRIDAYS FOR BOOK BEGINNING FUN!
Please join me every Friday to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you are reading, along with your initial thoughts about the sentence, impressions of the book, or anything else the opener inspires. Please remember to include the title of the book and the author's name.
EARLY BIRDS & SLOWPOKES: This weekly post goes up Thursday evening for those who like to get their posts up and linked early on. But feel free to add a link all week.
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YOUR BOOK BEGINNING
MY BOOK BEGINNING
The years before the war forced everyone in Shanghai to choose: Nationalists or Communists? Resist the Japanese invaders or collaborate with them?
-- Night in Shanghai by Nicole Mones. Great beginning for setting the scene in pre-WWII Shanghai. But it doesn't hint at the terrific premise, which is how black American jazz musicians expatriated to Shanghai in the 1930s to avoid prejudice in the US.
Mones put meticulous research into this sliver of fascinating history. But the historical details never bog down the exciting, sexy story of an American pianist falling in love with a Chinese spy. Great stuff!
Night in Shanghai is the fourth novel by Nicole Mones, following Lost in Translation, A Cup of Light, and The Last Chinese Chef.
