Sarah's Reviews > Street of Eternal Happiness: Big City Dreams Along a Shanghai Road

“The sound of it is very inspiring, but first the Chinese people need to rejuvenate their trust in this country. There is no patriotism anymore. There is no trust. There is no love,” he says. “China is on a path without a soul.”

I kind of knew I'd like this before I even read it, but Street of Eternal Happiness exceeded even my high expectations.

Rob Schmitz's book follows a number of residents he befriends on a street in the former French Concession of Shanghai, 长乐路 (Chang Le Lu, which Schmitz translates as "Street of Eternal Happiness"). Schmitz is an American journalist, and in 2010 he returned to China as a correspondent for a public radio program, relocating to Shanghai with his young family. Having lived in rural China before as a member of the Peace Corps in the late 90s, Schmitz was familiar with China and spoke the language, which of course helps the stories told here to be told more authentically and accurately. The people he meets open up to him, and their stories are truly fascinating.

As with most Chinese cities, most of the residents Schmitz meets are not really locals. He meets a young dreamer, CK, who has recently opened a not very successful sandwich shop but makes accordions for a living; Auntie Fu, an avid churchgoer who keeps getting involved in pyramid schemes she are sure will earn her tonnes of money (at the disgust of her husband, a pancake stall owner); and Zhao, a former factory worker turned shopkeeper who hopes for a better future for her two adult sons. We also meet an elderly couple forced out of their traditional home to make way for a new apartment complex. Although I was well aware this happened in China, I'd never heard a personal account of the lengths the companies will go to to remove residents from their homes, and it was quite frankly shocking and upsetting.

An engaging and eye-opening account of everyday lives in modern China. Highly recommended!