Ocean Devil: The life and legend of George Hogg

by James MacManus

The dramatic true-life story of George Hogg, a young Oxford graduate who is caught up in the Japanese invasion of China in 1937 and the Chinese Civil war, and who leads a group of Chinese children hundreds of miles across 15,000-foot mountains to safety – only to die tragically in early 1945. The author, James MacManus, was working as a reporter in Shanghai in 1980s when he heard talk of a statue being up in the remote town of Shandon on the Mongolian border in memory of an Englishman called George Hogg. This book is the result of his investigations – and the basis for a major feature film called 'The Children of Huang Shi', directed by Roger Spottiswoode and starring Jonathan Rhys Myers, to be released in spring 2008. One westerner who lived in China throughout the Cultural Revolution described Hogg as "an outstanding young Englishman who fell in love with foreign people and devoted his life to their betterment. What he did made him deeply and widely loved." MacManus has been back to China to interview the surviving old boys of Hogg's school. Hogg's reputation is kept alive by their loyalty to this day. The dramatic trajectory of Hogg's life took him within a few months from a privileged existence at Oxford to life on the run from Japanese secret police in China.

Genres: China, History

288 pages, Paperback

First published March 3, 2008

About the author

James MacManus has worked in the newspaper business for 46 years. He is currently the Managing Director of the Times Literary Supplement.

He is the author of On the Broken Shore (The Language of the Sea, UK edition), and Ocean Devil: The Life and Legend of George Hogg which was made into a film starring Jonathan Rhys Meyers

His latest book, Black Venus, is a vivid novel of Charles Baudelaire and his lover Jeanne Duval, the Haitian cabaret singer who inspired his most famous and controversial poems, set in nineteenth-century Paris. Duckworth will publish the UK edition of Black Venus on February 27th 2014.The UK edition follows the successful launch of the novel in the US by Thomas Dunne books of New York.

Reviews

[Sheri S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The life of George Hogg proved somewhat interesting. I learned quite a bit about the conflict between China and Japan leading up to and during World War II. George Hogg seemed a noble man with great aspirations who finally found what would make him most happy in life. He was the headmaster at a school in China and had to move the school on one occasion to escape approaching military forces.
I was a bit disappointed that the 700 mile journey involved in moving the school was not discussed with more detail. I think I would have liked to have learned more about the man himself as opposed to the great amount of history.

[Ming Jiu Li · Rating 2 out of 5]

Served as a good reminder for some key historical events, but it was mostly chronological story-telling, and failed to elucidate larger and deeper understandings of China in that time period, and China's interactions with foreigners and philanthropy, etc. Also, think there were some inconsistencies.

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mix of a personal biography with the political backdrop of China where George spent eight years during the Sino-Japanese war. Not ideal for people who are already quite familiar with the topic, but it is explained to help you appreciate Hogg's surroundings, thus to understand this fascinating man.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a really interesting read and amazing that it is all a real life experience. I watched the movie version with Jonathan Rhys-Myers before I read the book and it is a bit different, but I thought they did a good job of adapting to film.

[Sylvia Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. Would have liked more about George Hogg's life and work. However it was very illuminating to read about China's struggles because of Japanese invasion and the part this played in the second world war.

[Magcos · Rating 4 out of 5]

great story the movie was good, too