A heart-rending tale of a wartime Jewish refugee and his Chinese-American lover in Shanghai that will “sweep readers along for the ride” (The Globe and Mail)
On November 9, 1938—Kristallnacht—the Nazis unleash a night of terror across Germany that paves the way for Hitler’s “Final Solution.” Meanwhile, the Imperial Japanese Army continues to rampage through China and tighten its stranglehold on Shanghai, a besieged and divided city that becomes the last haven for thousands of desperate European Jews.
Dr. Franz Adler, an Austrian Jew and widowed surgeon, flees Vienna and travels to Shanghai with his daughter. There, at a refugee hospital, Franz falls for enigmatic nurse Soon Yi “Sunny” Mah. The chemistry between them is intense and immediate. The danger escalates for Shanghai’s Jewish refugee community as the Japanese ally themselves militarily with the Germans and attack Pearl Harbor. Facing starvation, disease and threats from two hostile powers, Franz is torn between his family’s security and his heart.
This stirring, fast-paced tale brings history to life through human emotion and perseverance in the face of adversity. The Far Side of the Sky is the first in a brilliant trilogy set during this little-known chapter of Second World War history.
“In The Far Side of the Sky, a refugee doctor, war-torn Shanghai, and Eichmann’s monstrous bureaucracy collide with surgical precision. . . . Kalla’s characters mend both body and soul.”
