The Shanghai free taxi : journeys with the hustlers and rebels of the new China

Title:

Author:

Langfitt, Frank author

ISBN:

9781474612326

Additional ISBN:

9781474612326 (paperback)

Personal Author:

Langfitt, Frank author

Publication Information:

London : Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2019.

Physical Description:

xiii, 300 pages : maps ; 24 cm.

Personal Subject:

Langfitt, Frank.

Geographic Term:

Shanghai (China) -- Social conditions -- 21st century.

Shanghai (China) -- Economic conditions -- 21st century.

Shanghai (China) -- Civilization -- 21st century.

Language:

English

Abstract:

NPR correspondent Frank Langfitt describes how he created a free taxi service - offering rides in exchange for illuminating conversation - to go beyond the headlines and get to know a wide range of colourful, compelling characters representative of the new China. They include folks like "Beer," a slippery salesman who tries to sell Langfitt a used car; Rocky, a farm boy turned Shanghai lawyer; and Chen, who runs an underground Christian church and moves his family to America in search of a better, freer life.

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Library	Shelf Location	Shelf Number	Material Type	Item Barcode	Status
Searching... Timaru Library	Non-fiction	951.132 LAN	Book	TI6593687	Searching... Unknown

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Summary

As any traveller knows, the best and most honest conversations take place during car rides. So when journalist Frank Langfitt wanted to learn more about the real China, he started driving a cab - and discovered a country amid seismic political and economic change. The Chinese economic boom, with its impact on the environment, global trade, and the tech industry, has been one of the most important stories of the twenty-first century. Yet few realise that the boom is largely over, and that the new reality in China is unequal growth, political anxiety and a newly empowered strongman president.In order to understand this new world, Frank Langfitt offered the citizens of Shanghai a simple deal: a conversation in exchange for a free taxi ride. Rides turned into follow-up interviews, shared meals and even a wedding invitation. In this adventurous book, we get to know an array of quirky yet representative characters like Beer Horse, the pushy dealer who sells Langfitt his used car; Rocky, a stylishly dressed migrant worker who loves John Denver music; and Xiao Chen, who moved his family to Hawaii to escape China's oppressive education system but was unable to get out of the country himself.Unfolding over the course of several years, THE SHANGHAI FREE TAXI is a sensitive and eye-opening book about a rapidly changing country.

Reviews (3)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Langfitt, a former NPR China correspondent, offers an engaging exploration of China in a moment of economic growth and cultural upheaval. As a foreign journalist trying to understand the perspectives of ordinary people in a famously circumspect culture, Langfitt hit upon the idea of offering "free cab rides in exchange for conversation." The result is a collection of fascinating journalistic narratives that introduce memorable individuals such as brothers Rocky and Ray, who traded farm work for law jobs in Shanghai; Fifi, an idealistic psychologist and former teacher who says that she feels safer and more free outside her country; Ashley, the daughter of Communist Party officials who seeks an American MBA and more intellectual diversity than she finds in China; and Chen, a pajama salesman and member of an underground Christian church who eventually moves to America in search of a less competitive, more tolerant culture. Langfitt also gauges his contacts' reactions to the Brexit morass, the election of Donald Trump, and their attempts to navigate the parallel resurgence of popular nationalism and political authoritarianism in their own country. This engaging work is sure to interest those who have enjoyed Langfitt's NPR reporting or who are curious about contemporary Chinese culture and politics. (June) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus Review

A longtime NPR reporter who has lived and worked in China for more than a decade offers an engaging account of how ordinary Chinese are navigating the complex changes and challenges in their evolving nation.In an ingenious experiment to interview people in a relaxed, private manner, Langfitt, a former taxi driver in Philadelphia who is now the London correspondent for NPR, offered free cab rides in Shanghai in exchange for conversation. Since roof lights were not permitted, the author festooned his car with magnetic signs ("Make Shanghai friends, Chat about Shanghai life"). Most people seemed delighted at the free ride and opened up to the Mandarin-speaking foreigner. His passengers included Rocky, "a farm boy turned Shanghai lawyer," and Charles, a salesman who went on to work for a European newspaper. During road trips, the talk often turned political, and his passengers revealed their thoughts about the state of the roads, Chairman Mao, and the corruption built into the communist system. The tales of Rocky and Charles resurface throughout the work, and in each chapter, Langfitt offers examples of those searching for what Xi Jinping calls the "Chinese Dream." There's Joanna, a human rights lawyer who was once imprisoned in a public park; Crystal, a Chinese immigrant in America whose sister had disappeared in the mountains of Southwest China and who urged Langfitt to help in the search; and Ashley, a young professional who grew up in a family of party officials but moved to America "in search of political freedom months before the election of Donald Trump." All are in search of individual wealth and freedom, now championed by China in a new era in which the country is asserting itself in the world yet still leaving people behind. Lively, humorous, and touching, the book exposes the struggles of regular people in conflict with an authoritarian state.Without judgment, the author/driver allows his subjects to narrate their own adventures, leading to honest, raw, human stories. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Booklist Review

In 2014, NPR correspondent Langfitt outfitted a used Camry as a ""free taxi"" the only payment required was conversation. This ingenious method fostered free-flowing exchanges with a strong cross-section of Shanghai residents that were frequently featured on-air. Even after transferring to his current post in London, he kept in touch with his riders, allowing this narrative to go much deeper, showing how their lives and thinking changed over a number of years. Readers meet, among others, a lawyer who grew up in the rural countryside, the daughter of officials who wants to leave China permanently, a hair stylist who assuages his filial guilt by giving free haircuts to seniors, and a self-taught migrant whose knowledge leaves him more and more disillusioned. Langfitt deftly captures the nature of a rapidly changing China, the effects this has on society on a personal level, and how people attempt to navigate a system whose rules are constantly changing. Drawing on years of reporting, he provides context and a broader picture to anchor the narrative's kaleidoscope of characters, experiences, and opinions, making for a heartfelt, engaging, and informative read.--Jennifer Rothschild Copyright 2010 Booklist