Tess Johnston

Tess Johnston first came to Shanghai in 1981 to work at the American Consulate General and in 1996, after over thirty years in the diplomatic service, she retired and stayed on to research, write, and lecture.  She and co-author DekeErh have published 25 books, including 15 volumes on Western architecture and the expatriate experience in old China.  A native of Virginia, her life spanned three continents for over 45 years, seven in Germany (both east and west), and some 35 in Asia, including 28 in Shanghai and seven in Vietnam (1967-74).  That peripatetic life is the subject of her latest book, (February 2010) Permanently Temporary: From Berlin to Shanghai in Half a Century, which she will introduce at the 2010 Literary Festival. Permanently Temporary: From Berlin to Shanghai in Half a Century, Saturday, March 13, 3pm