Last Boat Out of Shanghai

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The dramatic, real-life stories of four young people caught in the mass exodus from Shanghai following China's 1949 Communist Revolution highlight the struggles faced by emigrants today. Shanghai, once China's jewel and a hub of modernity, became a city of fear as Mao's revolution took hold. Many citizens, terrified of the impending horrors, fled in every direction. Seventy years later, the last generation to remember this exodus shared their experiences with journalist Helen Zia, who interviewed numerous exiles about their tumultuous journeys. From these accounts, Zia narrates the stories of four young residents grappling with the choice to abandon their lives for uncertain futures as refugees in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the U.S. Young Benny, reluctantly inheriting his father's wartime legacy, must decide whether to escape to Hong Kong or navigate a newly Communist China. Annuo, fleeing with her father, becomes an unwelcome exile in Taiwan. Ho, facing deportation, fights to continue his studies in the U.S. while his family struggles back home. Lastly, Bing, given away by her impoverished parents, confronts the challenges of starting anew among strangers in America.