The Foreign Service Journal, November 2009

N O V E M B E R 2 0 0 9 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 41 tion and fantasy. “Lively and thought-provoking,” says Publishers Weekly in a starred review. “Lake effectively anneals steampunk with geo-mechanical magic in an al- legorical matrix of empire-building and Victorian natural science.” Set in the early 19th century, this odd world is full of everything from sorcery to British imperial intrigues and mechanical men. For example, there is a 100-mile-high wall that runs along the equator. A giant brass ring holds the world in place, and the movements of the planets are governed by giant gears. The narrative is driven by three intriguing charac- ters, who weave in and out of the plot and several sub- plots as they journey across an imaginative Earth, both separately and together, in a world-building adventure. The author’s travel experience, fertile imagination and command of historical detail are obvious in the novel, which takes place in Connecticut, Africa and England, as well as on “the Wall.” As John Clute wrote in the Washington Post Book World , “Lake has configured his world-dominating empires, one British, the other Chi- nese, with huge and devoted attention to the last detail.” The son of retired FSO and former ambassador Joe Lake, Jay Lake lives in Portland, Ore. He has written more than 200 short stories, four collections and a chap- book, along with novels published by Tor Books, Night Shade Books and Fair Press. In 2004, he won the John W. Campbell Award for Best NewWriter. Lake has pub- lished two other novels in this series: Mainspring (2007) and Green (2009). Green Jay Lake, Tor, 2009, $26.95, hardcover, 368 pages. In Green , Lake shifts “from steampunk to lush fantasy filled with exotic locales and exquisite de- scriptions,” says Publishers Weekly . Green is an exquisitely beautiful woman in a mystical world, whose first memory was when her peasant father sold her to an immortal noble, the Undying Duke. He takes her to a far-away, European-like country, where she is considered a jewel amongst his collection of women in the Court of the Pomegranate Tree. There she learns the ways of a courtesan. The book has underlying themes of gender-politics, slavery and race. Green’s dark skin makes her stand out from the other women in the harem. Yet when she later returns to her native country, which seems reminiscent of India, she is unfamiliar with the traditional language and customs. As she struggles to uncover her past and move forward into a better future, Green, along with two friends, plots to kill the duke by breaking the spell that keeps him alive. The quest of the fiercely independent Green in this supernatural world offers a fresh take on the relationship between gods and mortals. COFFEE-TABLE BOOKS Shanghai Art Deco Deke Erh and Tess Johnston, Old China Hand Press, 2006, $80, hardcover, 320 pages. During the 1930s, a striking artistic and archi- tectural movement swept through Shanghai. This new style, reflecting the excitement and optimism of a civilization moving into the modern era, was Shanghai Art Deco—a style not dissimilar to its American cousin, but with uniquely traditional Chinese motifs. Though in various states of disrepair and modification, these relics of a brief, bright era of Shanghai’s history still dot the landscape (mainly in the former French Concession and International Settlement). Photographer Deke Erh and researcher and archivist Tess Johnston have been collaborating for more than 15 years. Their first photographic collection documenting the Western presence in Old China’s architecture was published in 1993. The present book, their thirteenth volume, contains nearly 1,000 photos of public buildings, apartments, villas, furniture and other objects in the art deco style. A beautiful collection and a fine coffee-table book, the work contains detailed background informa- tion on the images in both English and Mandarin. Tess Johnston retired from the U.S. consulate general in Shanghai in 1996 to devote her time to editing, re- searching, writing and lecturing. She has spent almost 35 years in Asia on a variety of diplomatic assignments, the past 25 in Shanghai. Deke Erh distinguished himself as one of the earliest freelance photographers in China. The recipient of numerous awards, especially for his pho- tography of architecture, he has pursued an abiding in- terest in historical research on Shanghai and other parts of China. To purchase this book, e-mail tessjohnston@ssbg.