SHANGHAILANDERS

Mei Mei Macleod narrates a family drama told in reverse, starting in 2040 and ending in 2014. Leo Yang; his Japanese French wife, Eko; and their three daughters, Yumi, Yoko, and Kiko, navigate the complexities of life in Shanghai and elsewhere. As the story moves backward, characters become younger, a development that allows Macleod to subtly change her portrayals of the three daughters while still leaving each character recognizable as her previous older self. Macleod dazzles with her linguistic prowess as she voices the numerous accents required by the large cast of characters and smoothly performs dialogue in French, Japanese, and Chinese, in addition to English. An outstanding performance of a startling novel. K.M.P. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2024]