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    Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road
    Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road
    Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road
    Audiobook12 hours

    Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road

    Written by Rob Schmitz

    Narrated by Paul Boehmer

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Modern Shanghai: a global city in the midst of a renaissance, where dreamers arrive each day to partake in a mad torrent of capital, ideas, and opportunity. Marketplace's Rob Schmitz is one of them. He immerses himself in his neighborhood, forging deep relationships with ordinary people who see in the city's sleek skyline a brighter future, and a chance to rewrite their destinies. There's Zhao, whose path from factory floor to shopkeeper is sidetracked by her desperate measures to ensure a better future for her sons. Down the street lives Auntie Fu, a fervent capitalist forever trying to improve herself with religion and get-rich-quick schemes while keeping her skeptical husband at bay. Up a flight of stairs, musician and cafe owner CK sets up shop to attract young dreamers like himself but learns he's searching for something more.
    A tale of twenty-first-century China, Street of Eternal Happiness profiles China's distinct generations through multifaceted characters who illuminate an enlightening, humorous, and at times heartrending journey along the winding road to the Chinese Dream.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJul 5, 2016
    ISBN9781515977896
    Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road

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    Reviews for Street of Eternal Happiness

    4/5

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    • 5/5
      I really enjoyed reading Street of Eternal Happiness. The stories focused on a few families/individuals that live and/or work on the Street of Eternal Happiness in Shanghai. A common theme throughout all of the stories told is The System and how people deal with it. I was not aware until after reading this book that there is no land ownership in China and the government now leases property to people for up to 70 years. The ages of the people in the book vary and provide varying viewpoints and perspectives. Since the author has lived in China for many years and is a reporter about the economy in China and speaks Chinese he definitely had more background about what is happening.
    • 3/5
      I prefer Peter Hessler's books, on China or Egypt. This has half as many characters, and is more focused on business (especially pyramid schemes). Much less humor, too. It isn't bad, but I wanted more, especially more stories about daily life. > They tend to ignore their elders' guidance. Their parents and grandparents toiled most of their lives through Mao's political campaigns without much of an education. Like Auntie Fu and Uncle Feng, they now struggle to cope with the free-market realities of modern China and they usually give lousy advice.
    • 4/5
      An American journalist tells the stories of families who live in his street in Shanghai.
    • 4/5
      This book is an examination of a specific neighborhood in Shanghai, using the residents, the history, and the author's day to day life to paint a broader picture of China throughout the course of the last 70 years. With the access and freedom granted a foreign journalist, Schmitz is able to get candid and personal stories from his neighbors and their associates. This individual tales serve to add a distinct and identifiable human element to the grand sweep of modern Chinese history. The narratives memories of the interviewees is the strength of the book as is Schmitz's curiosity as it opens several doors and provides a much more personable work. Schmitz also does a decent job staying as objective as possible and there was little attempt to use the less than ideal history of the figures in the book to satisfy pre-existing notions about China or conform to an agenda. That being said, despite Schmitz's impressive language skills, the books is still written the eyes of a Western journalist. This is a strength as mentioned previously but can also be seen as an impediment as the lack of personal connection to the people, the land, and the history can detach the writer from a clear direction or goal.This is a strong book that does a good job illustrating the modern history of China through the life stories of some of its citizens. Compelling, confusing, frustrating, and more, the book is entertaining but perhaps not as focused or informative as it set out to be.
    • 4/5
      This book shows us modern China in a way that few people ever experience. Schmitz writes of his personal experience as a Chinese resident and of the beauty of old Shanghai and how the modernization of China is destroying entire neighborhoods and communities that have existed for hundreds of years. Schmitz also provides effective understanding of how the Cultural Revolution effects China even today and how issues such as the One Child Policy have effected Chinese society. Overll an excellent read
    • 4/5
      Fascinating and sobering account of modern China as seen through the eyes of some of its residents. Schmitz is an intelligent, sympathetic observer who does his best to let his neighbors speak for themselves even as he explicates the illogic, doublespeak and corruption that are part of dealing with life under Chinese Communism. Though the characters are mostly optimistic about their futures, I was struck over and over again by how much damage Mao and his subordinates did to their citizens, whether through overtly repressive polices and actions, such as the Cultural Revolution, or through more subtle conditioning. (The story of one woman who keeps getting suckered by con men is particularly disturbing; her gullible behavior is a direct result of her being taught to respect authority instead of thinking for herself.) Mostly, I was left thankful that my mother's family left the mainland when it did.
    • 5/5
      This is a fascinating look at the new China- the China that has embraced capitalism, celebrates youth, with a free-wheeling, sometimes free-for-all economy. Schmitz examines the ways in which the new Chinese economy is affecting the population by interviewing the people who live along a street in Shanghai (whose name roughly translates to "eternal happiness.") The street, in the former French Concession area of Shanghai, has long been a desirable location. It still bears the architectural signs of French colonialism, but is also dotted with sleek glass skyscrapers. The residents of the street are an interesting bunch. There is a flower shop owner who sacrificed everything to try and make a better future in Shanghai, only to have those dreams shattered by her lack of residency permits. There is a young entrepreneur trying to make a go of new style of sandwich shop. There is a couple desperately trying to hold on to their old residence on the street, even though the government is determined to claim it and sell the land. There is an easily duped grandmother, who is regularly taken in by economic and religious charlatans. Schmitz tells their stories, and the stories of the city more broadly, with insight and sensitivity. He is aided by the fact that he lives in Shanghai, and he is fluent in Mandarin. Schmitz discusses the fundamental generation gap that affects twenty-first century China. The younger generation did not live through the Cultural Revolution. The older generation did. The scars and experiences of the older generation are anathema to millennials. For anyone who wants to know more about life in China's fast-growing cities, this is an interesting and well-presented book.
    • 4/5
      In 2010, author Rob Schmitz moved with his family to Shanghai to live on an optimistically named street roughly translated The Street of Eternal Happiness. Schmitz is a journalist; he had lived in China previously, spoke fluently and loved the people.These are his stories of the inhabitants of this street; the small business owners, the residents trying to hang on to their homes when the authorities want to destroy them to build high rise buildings; the residents desperately putting their faith in get rich quick schemes and foreign religions.We see the issues these people face in their day-to-day lives as they struggle to get their children into good schools, migrate from small poorer villages to the city, and try to insist on their rights under the Chinese constitution.Their backstories are the history of China such as Mao's Great Leap Forward and the famine (an interesting point being that the generation that underwent these trials has mostly faded away.It's both well written and written with respect for the people and their stories. I came away from this intriguing book with a better understanding of China its people.And the photo on the cover makes it one of the most wonderful covers I have seen in a long time!
    • 4/5
      I received an ARC through the Early Reviewers give-away. The fact that it was an ARC was the only reason I didn't give the book 5 stars. This copy was missing some maps, etc. that would have helped in understanding the layout of the "street" that the book played in. It was quite interesting to read about everday, "normal" Chinese people of different ages, who are trying to make a living on the street in Shanghai that the author is also living, while working as a correspondent. Yes, the book had some parts, where a deeper understanding of the Chinese political system would be helpful, but overall it was a great read. I hope Mr. Schmitz will write more books in the future!
    • 4/5
      a lovely little grouping of stories, each setting the other's off, all balancing each other out, giving a nice rounded view of a certain block on a certain street in a certain city. I learned a lot, and am left wondering how these stories will continue out into the future.
    • 5/5
      Having been on a tour in China back in 1992 and remember how different Shanghai was from the other cities that I saw, I was excited to win the chance to read and review Street of Eternal Happiness by Rob Schmitz. The author interviewed people who lived on the same street that he did. The literal translation of the street’s name is the Street of Eternal Happiness. It is two miles long and he met several people on his walks around the city and some others who had family connections with the residents. China has gone and is still going through immense change both physically and generationally. Rob Schmitz’s reporter skills shine through the stories of the people on the street. You will find yourself laughing, in wonder and also feeling deep sadness when you read them. The stories are all true but he has changed a few names. You meet people who have lost out in education, family life and a feeling of belonging because of the changes that their lives went through in labor camps and the Cultural Revolution. Pyramid schemes,success stories are just some of what goes on the Street of Eternal Happiness. Just as the people of China are very diverse, so too are the people who live on this street.I highly recommend this book for everyone who loves to visit or learn about China.I received an advanced copy of this book from the Publisher as a win from FirstReads but that in no way made a difference in my thoughts or feelings in this review.
    • 5/5
      Having just returned from my first trip to China and Shanghai, I was excited to read this book. I found Schmitz' writing to be sensitive, engaging, and immensely readable. He injects his observations with wry humor when appropriate and abject sympathy when called for. The people we meet who live on his street offer a peek into modern China in a way that no textbook can deliver. Even better, Schmitz delves into their pasts and the pasts of their families to provide historical context for how they got to where they are. Schmitz' neighbors are interesting, funny, and sad and he does them justice with this book.
    • 4/5
      Schmitz writes an engaging look at modern China as told through the lives of several residents of Shanghai's Street of Eternal Happiness. By the end of the book you can't help but feel you know these people and feel their disappointments, struggles and dreams for a better life for themselves and their children. Despite what certain current politicians might have you think, these people aren't our rivals for a brighter future.4 & 1/2 stars
    • 4/5
      Take a street in Shanghai. Zoom in. Closer. Closer. Closer still.Let's meet the people who live here. What are their lives really like? Where did they come from? Their hopes? Their frustrations?Shanghai's a big city in China. But people are people. And yet they are also people in a big city in China and that makes them interesting. Our guide is an experienced reporter and speaks fluent Chinese. You won't want to miss this visit to a street in a big city in China.
    • 4/5
      A unique and insightful inside look at a single street in China, this book is beautifully written and expresses the humanity of people living in devastating situations. Although I did find that sometimes the timelines of individual stories within this book were a bit scattered, it was quite interesting to get this inside look at the everyday lives of people who live on the opposite side of the world. Schmitz is a journalist and foreign correspondent working in China for many years, which gives him a singular viewpoint on the people whom he is profiling. On a personal note, I'm trying to make a point of reading books that I feel I wouldn't necessarily encounter on the shelves of my local bookstore, or even hear recommended from other people, and I believe that Street of Eternal Happiness is one such book. I'm so glad that I have had a chance to read it.
    • 5/5
      Rob Schmitz does a wonderful job of telling the stories of several people in modern Shanghai. Not only does he show us their daily routines and struggles, he also explores how historical events, such as the Cultural Revolution, shaped these people, whether they lived through it or are living with the historical legacies. The people are quite memorable (Auntie Fu with her get-rich plans and CK's ever-evolving sandwich shop to name two); an entertaining and thought-provoking sociological study.
    • 5/5
      As a foreign correspondent reporting on Chinese economics, Rob Schmitz lives in Shanghai on a street named The Street of Eternal Happiness. As he gets to know the personal stories of the business owners that live on his street he learns about the history, economics, culture and frustrations of China. He follows several different people including a young entrepreneur who keeps pushing ahead at his sandwich shop even when he has no customers, a man who owns a snack business and his bickering wife who invests thousands of dollars in pyramid schemes, and a flower shop owner who escaped a abusive marriage to build her own life in Shanghai. In some ways this reminded me of Katherine Boo's Beyond the Beautiful Forever in that it follows one small area of people who have been at the mercy of their country's political and economic situation (though this book is much less bleak) but the author in this book is very present in the situation he writes about whereas Boo removes herself completely from the pages of the book. I have to say that I personally favor Schmitz's approach because there is definitely a reaction to his foreigners that affects the overall interactions. Overall, I really thought this was a well written, insightful look into a country that still remains somewhat a mystery.
    • 5/5
      This was an excellent work of non-fiction. The author, an American ex-pat journalist interviews a number of Chinese people living in or from Shanghai, all of the families suffered due to the Cultural Revolution. For the most part, the younger generation is thriving with the economic change but the older generation, those who lived through the turmoil continue to suffer from the aftermath. I received an ARC and enjoyed it!
    • 5/5
      I found Street of Eternal Happiness fascinating. Rob Schmitz has lived in China for years and speaks Chinese so he can talk to the people in his Shanghai neighborhood without the filter of a translator. You get a clear picture of the people, their often tragic histories and their problems with the government. By the end of the book, they feel like friends. It is eye-opening to see what it means to live in a communist country where the government owns all the property. When you can't own property and you can't count on the law to protect you, your freedom is extremely limited. The writing is clear and very engaging, a very worthwhile book.
    • 3/5
      Street of Eternal Happiness, subtitled "Big city dreams along a Shanghai road," is a detailled, fact-filled account of the long-term relational experience between American reporter Rob Schmitz and elderly Auntie Zhao. Each is deeply interested in the other's cultural mores. (I was most charmed by her asking him if, in America, "Are you allowed to beat you wife even after divorce?"