How to implement custom JsonConverter in JSON.NET to deserialize a List of base class objects?

Question

I am trying to extend the JSON.net example given here http://james.newtonking.com/projects/json/help/CustomCreationConverter.html

I have another sub class deriving

Answer 1

Here's another solution that avoids the use of jObject.CreateReader(), and instead creates a new JsonTextReader (which is the behavior used by the default JsonCreate.Deserialze method:

public abstract class JsonCreationConverter : JsonConverter
{
    protected abstract T Create(Type objectType, JObject jObject);

    public override bool CanConvert(Type objectType)
    {
        return typeof(T).IsAssignableFrom(objectType);
    }

    public override object ReadJson(JsonReader reader, Type objectType, object existingValue, JsonSerializer serializer)
    {
        if (reader.TokenType == JsonToken.Null)
            return null;

        // Load JObject from stream
        JObject jObject = JObject.Load(reader);

        // Create target object based on JObject
        T target = Create(objectType, jObject);

        // Populate the object properties
        StringWriter writer = new StringWriter();
        serializer.Serialize(writer, jObject);
        using (JsonTextReader newReader = new JsonTextReader(new StringReader(writer.ToString())))
        { 
            newReader.Culture = reader.Culture;
            newReader.DateParseHandling = reader.DateParseHandling;
            newReader.DateTimeZoneHandling = reader.DateTimeZoneHandling;
            newReader.FloatParseHandling = reader.FloatParseHandling;
            serializer.Populate(newReader, target);
        }

        return target;
    }

    public override void WriteJson(JsonWriter writer, object value, JsonSerializer serializer)
    {
        serializer.Serialize(writer, value);
    }
}