FCCC In-person Event: A talk about the book “The Peking Express: The Bandits Who Stole a Train, Stunned the West, and Broke the Republic of China” by author James Zimmerman

The Peking Express is an exciting and fast-paced story about China’s great train robbery of 1923 and full of banditry, political intrigue, heroism, and a reflection of the excesses of the Warlord Era in early 20th century China.

The crisis — covered extensively in newspapers around the world — lasted for six weeks while the bandits moved the hostages across the Shandong countryside with the Chinese army in pursuit. The 1923 incident that is the subject of the book has implications for today, including the use of hostage diplomacy for leverage against foreign governments, the scourge of systemic corruption, and the challenges of dealing with poverty and the widening economic divide. The same and similar issues that confronted those in power in 1923 continue to bedevil those in power today.

James, has lived and worked in Beijing for over 25 years, and previously served four terms as the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China.