''Shanghai Dancing'' is a 2003 novel by

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n novelist

Brian Castro Brian Albert Castro (born 1950) is an Australian novelist and essayist. Early life and education Castro was born at sea, between Macau and Hong Kong, in 1950. His father was of Spanish, Portuguese, and English descent, and born in Shanghai. His ...

Plot summary

The novel's main character is, like the author, named Castro, living in Australia and hailing from a Chinese and Portuguese background. Antonio Castro is attempting to come to an understanding of his complicated family history, and in particular, about the lives of his parents in Shanghai during the 1930s.

Notes

Epigraph: * Author note: 'Shanghai Dancing is a fictional autobiography. Told from an Australian perspective and loosely based on my family's life in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Macau from the 1930s to the 1960s.' * Epigraph: We photograph things in order to drive them out of our minds. (Franz Kafka) * Dedication: For B. B.

Reviews

* ''The Sydney Morning Herald''Sydney Morning Herald'', "Shanghai Dancing by Brian Castro" by James Ley, 29 March 2003
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Awards and nominations

* 2003 shortlisted

The Age Book of the Year ''The Age'' Book of the Year Awards were annual literary awards presented by Melbourne's ''The Age'' newspaper. The awards were first presented in 1974. After 1998, they were presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival Melbourne Writer ...

Award — Fiction Prize * 2004 shortlisted Festival Awards for Literature (SA) — Award for Innovation in Writing * 2004 winner

New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, also known as the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, were first awarded in 1979. They are among the richest literary awards in Australia. Notable prizes include the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction, th ...

— Christina Stead Prize for Fiction * 2004 winner

— Book of the Year * 2005 longlisted

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award (), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. It promotes excellence in world literature and is solely ...

References

2003 Australian novels New South Wales Premier's Prize for Fiction Award-winning works Novels set in Shanghai Giramondo Publishing books {{2000s-hist-novel-stub