What is the setting of Empire of the Sun by J. G. Ballard?

The setting of this novel is Shanghai during World War II, when the Japanese invaded China. Shanghai is presented as a very cosmopolitan, very wealthy city. The streets near the Bund are crowded with businessmen, partygoers, and peasants. At the time the novel begins, there is already a strong Japanese military force present in Shanghai and war is on everyone’s minds.

Once the attacks begin on Shanghai, the setting of the novel shifts to the detention center and camps Jim is taken to on the outskirts of the city. After the camps close down, Jim spends a great deal of time in the fields between Nantao stadium and Lunghua airfield, a distance of about a mile or so from each other.