The Shanghai Badlands: Wartime Terrorism and Urban Crime, 1937-1941 (Cambridge Studies in Chinese History, Literature and Institutions) [Paperback]

Frederic Wakeman Jr (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521528712 | ISBN-13: 978-0521528719 | Publication Date: July 25, 2002 | Edition: First

Between August 1937 and December 1941, terrorist wars broke out between Nationalist secret agents and the assassins of the Japanese military authorities who occupied most of Shanghai, and a spate of assassinations, bombings, and machine gun raids took place under the very noses of authorities. The release of secret Chinese police files by the C.I.A. allow the inner workings of these terrorist groups, and their links to the Green Gang just before Pearl Harbor was bombed and World War II erupted, to be exposed for the first time.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This study takes the reader on a tour of political terrorism and urban crime on the borderlands of the various settlements in Shanghai from the beginning of World War II China to 1941." Arif Dirlik, The Historian

Book Description

Between August 1937 and December 1941, terrorist wars broke out between Nationalist secret agents and the assassins of the Japanese military authorities who occupied most of Shanghai, and a spate of assassinations, bombings, and machine gun raids took place under the very noses of authorities. The release of secret Chinese police files by the C.I.A. allow the inner workings of these terrorist groups, and their links to the Green Gang just before Pearl Harbor was bombed and World War II erupted, to be exposed for the first time.

Product Details

• Paperback: 244 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; First edition (July 25, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521528712
• ISBN-13: 978-0521528719
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.3 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #393,246 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Crime in Occupied Shanghai, September 30, 2003

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This review is from: The Shanghai Badlands: Wartime Terrorism and Urban Crime, 1937-1941 (Cambridge Studies in Chinese History, Literature and Institutions) (Hardcover)

This study covers the history of crime in Shanghai from November 1937 to December 1941. During this period, the Shanghai metropolitan area was sub-divided into the International Settlement, the French Concession and Japanese controlled Shanghai. In this war time city of overlapping jurisdictions and loyalties, crime flourished as it had never before.

Thanks to the release of secret Chinese police files long held by the CIA, Frederick Wakeman is able to chronicle the story of crime in Shanghai. This story has all the drama of a great crime tale. The book focuses on the western suburbs of Shanghai known as the "Bandlands". This disputed region of the city was the home to gambling casinos, brothels and opium dens.

All the great characters of a Chinese crime tale are present. There is the Green Gang, Japanese Secret Police, Nationalist Assasins, Puppet Government Assasins, Korean and Japanese Gangsters and helpless Imperialist police forces. The violent interaction of all these forces is inherently interesting.

Although, written for the Chinese History specialist, there is enough of interest in this book for anybody who wants to read a good real life crime tale. However, I would recommend first reading Wakeman's "Policing Shanghai". It places this story in its proper historical context.