Carl Crow arrived in China in 1911, made Shanghai his home and founded the country's first Western-style advertising agency. In Foreign Devils in the Flowery Kingdom, originally published in 1940, Carl recalls his twenty-five years in China and the many lessons that he learnt. He was almost unique among foreign commentators in taking the time to understand and appreciate the Chinese and their culture while also providing a vivid portrait of foreign life in Shanghai, a city, which Crow, in 1940, accurately predicted 'will only now live in memories'.

Carl Crow, an American, made Shanghai his home in the early 20th century and founded the country's first Western-style advertising agency.