LaValley, Josanne . Factory Girl. Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt Brace 2017 265p $17.99
ISBN 978-0-544-69947-2 Hardback ms/hs
Nonfiction E-BN
The fluid writing style in Factory Girl that
portrays the rural lifestyle of Muslim families living in northern China
contrasts dramatically with the accounts of the government conscription of
Muslim girls to work at a clothing factory in southern China. From the 22-hour
bus ride with a harsh female boss who offers no breaks and little food, to the
austere conditions of the living quarters at the factory and the brutal bosses
who insist on having the girls work overtime and “please” their wealthy clients
who place large clothing orders, this is a book that describes child labor
conditions resembling those of over a century ago, but that are still found in
countries that have no child labor laws. The nine Muslim girls form their own
community and try to help one another survive while working alongside local
Chinese girls who are given time off to go home. The narrative is sure to tug
at the heartstrings of readers who may wonder under what conditions their
foreign-made clothing was made. Using a Muslim girl as an “attendant/companion”
at a boss-owned nightclub is particularly jarring as female Muslims keep their
bodies covered and do not allow males to
touch them. This is a study in cultural conflict as well as a look at the conditions
in factories that lack proper hygiene, food, and living quarters for their
employees.
Strongly recommended for all high-school and most
middle-school libraries as a study in cultural differences as well as
slave-labor conditions in some foreign industries.
Summary: Nine Muslim girls are conscripted to work as
slave labor in a Chinese clothing factory. The writing contrasts their home
life in rural China with the austere and brutal working conditions in the
clothing factory. Grades 7-12.
Factory life, Clothing industry —Lois McNicol
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