Kirsty Manning grew up in northern New South Wales, Australia. She has degrees in literature and communications and worked as an editor and publishing manager in book publishing for over a decade. 

A country girl with wanderlust, her travels and studies have taken her through most of Europe, the east, and west coasts of the United States as well as pockets of Asia.

Kirsty’s journalism and photography specialising in lifestyle and travel regularly appear in magazines, newspapers, and online. She lives in Australia.

Research behind The Song of The Jade Lily.

“The narrative of this book employs the best attributes of fiction and authenticity to seamlessly span two unique worlds, past and present. As a result, it is a compelling read as well as richly informative.

“Like Horst, I was very pleased to be asked to share our individual, and unusual, stories of our Shanghai experiences. All of us from that milieu believe that we grew up in a unique city at a most unique time in history, never to be repeated!”

Sam Moshinsky, author of Goodbye Shanghai.

“I was impressed that Kirsty has been able to become so well-informed on the situation faced by many who had to find refuge in the only city where anyone could arrive without a visa or permit. Kirsty has done very well in bringing this experience to the wider public in a most readable and certainly interesting novel.”

Horst Eisfelder, author of Chinese Exile: My Years in Shanghai and Nanking

The inspiring men behind The Song of The Jade Lily, Sam Moshinsky (left) and Horst Eisfelder.

Both gentlemen attended Kirsty’s Australian launch. Kirsty interviewed Moshinsky and Eisfelder — former refugees who lived in Shanghai during WWII — and sought advice on the manuscript throughout her writing and research.

“… from the moment I started reading THE SONG OF THE JADE LILY, I knew I wanted to publish it. The book spoke to me on so many levels-as an exploration of an-unknown-to-me part of Jewish and Chinese history, as a well-researched look at the harsh realities of war, and, ultimately, as a beautiful story of what it means to be a family and what one is willing to do for love.”

Tessa Woodward, William Morrow Publishing, Harper Collins USA

Listen: Former Jewish refugee, Sam Moshinsky shares his experience of Shanghai.

Watch: Horst Eisfelder shares photographs and chats about his time in Shanghai