The Distant Land of My Father begins like a fairy tale: "My father was a millionaire in Shanghai in the 1930s.... On the day he was born, in the province of Shantung, neighbors presented my missionary grandparents, the only Americans for miles, with noodles in great abundance and one hundred chicken eggs, in honor of their son's birth." To the young Anna Schoene, life in Shanghai is indeed magical. There are servants, a luxurious villa, a beautiful mother who smells like Chanel No. 5, and a young, handsome, polo-playing father. Unfortunately, her father is also a smuggler and speculator who loves his freewheeling life more than anything (or anyone) else. Despite warnings, Schoene refuses to leave Shanghai even after the Japanese invade, and his wife and child retreat to Los Angeles; later, he survives imprisonment and torture only to once again choose Shanghai over his family--this time with the Communists moving in.

Bo Caldwell's sepia-toned evocation of 1930s Shanghai is lovely and physical, and given the built-in drama of its setting, this first novel ought to have the vividness of a classic movie. Yet the characters remain oddly flat while world events swirl around them. Great chunks of historical exposition seem largely undigested, while Schoene's final change of heart fails to ring true. In a sense, however, these shortcomings are beside the point. The Distant Land of My Father is above all a tragic romance, albeit one with an unusual love interest. Schoene is so besotted with Shanghai that his wife and daughter are scarcely as real to him as the city itself. --Mary Park


From Publishers Weekly
Caldwell's memoirlike first novel begins in 1930s Shanghai, a city where enterprising foreign entrepreneurs can quickly become millionaires and just as quickly lose everything as victims of the volatile political climate. Six-year-old narrator Anna Schoene tells the tale of her insurance salesman/smuggler father, Joseph, the son of American missionaries, whose life-long obsession with the city's opportunities gains him great riches, though it ultimately costs him his family and almost his life. Anna worships her father. Her life in Shanghai has been one of privilege, thanks to his shady business dealings. But after a harrowing kidnapping incident, and frightened by the Japanese invasion of China, her mother, Genevieve, flees home to South Pasadena, Calif., taking Anna with her. Joseph is convinced that his connections will keep him safe and refuses to leave. Imprisoned and tortured by the Japanese and subsequently the Chinese Communists, he survives, although he loses everything and is finally deported back to America in 1954. Over the years Anna has distanced herself emotionally from her father, realizing he needed money and power more than he needed his family. But when the physically broken and spiritually reborn Joseph returns to California, he reconciles with the grown Anna and her family. The memoir-style structure lends the characters a certain flatness, but Caldwell's even tone gives the tale a panoramic elegance. Though lacking in narrative vitality, the novel is interesting from a historical perspective and vivid with details of prewar Shanghai and Los Angeles. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
This remarkable first novel by a Washington Post writer tells the story of young Anna, whose troubled relationship with her maddening, enigmatic father, Joseph Schoene, is set against exotic wartime Shanghai. China-born missionary kid Joe speaks fluent Mandarin and becomes a tremendously successful if somewhat shady import-exporter. With his beautiful wife, Eve, and their beloved daughter, the family lives a privileged existence, but when the Japanese invade, their life quickly unravels. Joe sends his family to California, but he himself is arrested and jailed. After being briefly reunited with them, he returns to China to remake his fortune only to be interned by the Communists. He survives four grueling years in a horrendous prisonhe's nothing if not a survivorwhile unlucky Eve succumbs to unhappiness and leukemia. Though her grandmother warns Anna about letting Joe back into her life, Anna is conflicted. She has spent less than half her life with her father, and he wounded her badly, but she once loved him very much. Will she betray her gentle mother's memory by allowing him back into her life? This is a moving tale of love and the possibility of forgiveness, and Caldwell draws the reader in through powerfully drawn emotion and subtle characterization. Recommended for all libraries.Jo Manning, Barry Univ., Miami Shores, FL Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Anna, the narrator of this riveting first novel, lives in a storybook world: exotic pre- World War II Shanghai, with handsome young parents, wealth, and comfort. Her father, the son of missionaries, leads a charmed and secretive life, though his greatest joy is sharing his beloved city with his only daughter. Yet when Anna and her mother flee Japanese-occupied Shanghai to return to California, he stays behind, believing his connections and a little bit of luck will keep him safe.
Through Anna's memories and her father's journals we learn of his fall from charismatic millionaire to tortured prisoner, in a story of betrayal and reconciliation that spans two continents. The Distant Land of My Father, a breathtaking and richly lyrical debut, unfolds to reveal an enduring family love through tragic circumstances.

National Bestseller

FROM THE CRITICS

Los Angeles Times

This is a marvelous story . . . full of momentum yet complex and unpredictable.

Publishers Weekly

Caldwell's memoirlike first novel begins in 1930s Shanghai, a city where enterprising foreign entrepreneurs can quickly become millionaires and just as quickly lose everything as victims of the volatile political climate. Six-year-old narrator Anna Schoene tells the tale of her insurance salesman/smuggler father, Joseph, the son of American missionaries, whose life-long obsession with the city's opportunities gains him great riches, though it ultimately costs him his family and almost his life. Anna worships her father. Her life in Shanghai has been one of privilege, thanks to his shady business dealings. But after a harrowing kidnapping incident, and frightened by the Japanese invasion of China, her mother, Genevieve, flees home to South Pasadena, Calif., taking Anna with her. Joseph is convinced that his connections will keep him safe and refuses to leave. Imprisoned and tortured by the Japanese and subsequently the Chinese Communists, he survives, although he loses everything and is finally deported back to America in 1954. Over the years Anna has distanced herself emotionally from her father, realizing he needed money and power more than he needed his family. But when the physically broken and spiritually reborn Joseph returns to California, he reconciles with the grown Anna and her family. The memoir-style structure lends the characters a certain flatness, but Caldwell's even tone gives the tale a panoramic elegance. Though lacking in narrative vitality, the novel is interesting from a historical perspective and vivid with details of prewar Shanghai and Los Angeles. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

This remarkable first novel by a Washington Post writer tells the story of young Anna, whose troubled relationship with her maddening, enigmatic father, Joseph Schoene, is set against exotic wartime Shanghai. China-born missionary kid Joe speaks fluent Mandarin and becomes a tremendously successful if somewhat shady import-exporter. With his beautiful wife, Eve, and their beloved daughter, the family lives a privileged existence, but when the Japanese invade, their life quickly unravels. Joe sends his family to California, but he himself is arrested and jailed. After being briefly reunited with them, he returns to China to remake his fortune only to be interned by the Communists. He survives four grueling years in a horrendous prison -- he's nothing if not a survivor -- while unlucky Eve succumbs to unhappiness and leukemia. Though her grandmother warns Anna about letting Joe back into her life, Anna is conflicted. She has spent less than half her life with her father, and he wounded her badly, but she once loved him very much. Will she betray her gentle mother's memory by allowing him back into her life? This is a moving tale of love and the possibility of forgiveness, and Caldwell draws the reader in through powerfully drawn emotion and subtle characterization. Recommended for all libraries. Jo Manning, Barry Univ., Miami Shores, FL Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Washington Post

Don't believe everything book reviewers tell you! I just picked up another publication and read a lukewarm, unimpressed review of "The Distant Land of My Father," and was reminded, once again, that "literature" doesn't occur on the page but in the magic connections between page and the human brain. I was crazy about this book, couldn't put it down, was occasionally moved to tears; and who can say which review is "wrong" or "right"? (Actually, I prefer my interpretation, but it may be a function of the times as well; with the country now at some form of war, this novel comes even more alive.)