The Fall of Hong Kong: Britain, China, and the Japanese Occupation

On Christmas Day 1941 the Japanese captured Hong Kong, and Britain lost control of its Chinese colony for almost four years, a turning point in the process by which the British were to be expelled from the colony and from East Asia. This book unravels for the first time the dramatic story of the Japanese occupation and reinterprets the subsequent evolution of Hong Kong.

“Magnificent. . . . The clarity of mind Snow brings to his labor of storytelling and
contextualizing [is] amazing.”—John Lanchester, Daily Telegraph

“Beautifully written, with many telling anecdotes.”—Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs

“Very good. . . . [Provides] a much more nuanced picture than has appeared before in English of life among Hong Kong’s different communities before and during the Japanese occupation.”—Economist

Philip Snow is the author of the acclaimed The Star Raft: China’s Encounter with Africa.

"[The Fall of Hong Kong] is very different, and very good. . . . Where [Snow] comes into its own is in his use of Japanese and Chinese as well as British sources, which offer a much more nuanced picture than has appeared before in English of life among Hong Kong's different communities before and during the Japanese occupation."and#8212;Economist

On Christmas Day 1941 the Japanese captured Hong Kong, and Britain lost control of its Chinese colony for almost four years, a turning point in the process by which the British were to be expelled from the colony and from East Asia. This book unravels for the first time the dramatic story of the Japanese occupation and reinterprets the subsequent evolution of Hong Kong.

and#147;Magnificent. . . . The clarity of mind Snow brings to his labor of storytelling and contextualizing [is] amazing.and#8221;and#151;John Lanchester, Daily Telegraph

and#147;Beautifully written, with many telling anecdotes.and#8221;and#151;Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs

and#147;Very good. . . . [Provides] a much more nuanced picture than has appeared before in English of life among Hong Kongand#8217;s different communities before and during the Japanese occupation.and#8221;and#151;Economist

The definitive account of the wartime history of Hong Kong

On Christmas Day 1941 the Japanese captured Hong Kong, and Britain lost control of its Chinese colony for almost four years, a turning point in the process by which the British were to be expelled from the colony and from East Asia. This book unravels for the first time the dramatic story of the Japanese occupation and reinterprets the subsequent evolution of Hong Kong.

"Magnificent. . . . The clarity of mind Snow brings to his labor of storytelling and contextualizing is] amazing."--John Lanchester, Daily Telegraph

"Beautifully written, with many telling anecdotes."--Lawrence D. Freedman, Foreign Affairs

"Very good. . . . Provides] a much more nuanced picture than has appeared before in English of life among Hong Kong's different communities before and during the Japanese occupation."--Economist

Philip Snow is the author of the acclaimed The Star Raft: Chinaand#8217;s Encounter with Africa.