“The Last Kings of Shanghai: The Rival Jewish Dynasties That Helped Create Modern China” by Jonathan Kaufman
- Jun 3, 2020
- 1 min read
Chinese often claim a special relationship, sometimes verging on kinship, with Jews. The origins and reasons remain unclear but it may be at least in part due to two Jewish families—the Sassoons and their rivals, the Kadoories—both of whom played lasting roles in the development of two of China’s most modern cities: Shanghai and its rival, Hong Kong.
Jonathan Kaufman’s new book, The Last Kings of Shanghai: The Rival Jewish Dynasties That Helped Create Modern China, is the story of these two prominent families. At a time when the US (and the West in general) is re-evaluating commercial and business ties with China, to an extent where they are under threat, it is useful to look back to a previous era when Western-style business took hold in at least two concentrated areas in China to the extent that it affected economic and social development. One can examine this either through broad-brush economics, or through the stories of individuals. Kaufmann has here done the latter.
