Factory Girl

October 24, 2016
This hard-hitting novel focuses on the indenture of 16-year-old Roshen, who is forced to leave her close-knit Muslim Uyghur family in northwest China and work in a uniform factory. La Valley (The Vine Basket) sensitively conveys the culture shock of the sheltered Uyghur girls during their harrowing journey—via van, train, and the cargo box of a truck—and within the factory itself. Their cruel matron and draconian bosses dictate that they can no longer wear their headscarves and must only speak Mandarin or lose pay. Roshen emerges as a quiet leader, inspiring the other girls and protecting them when she can. The narrative strongly sketches the brutal conditions in the factory, including long hours in windowless workrooms, tea laced with stimulants, surveillance cameras in bathrooms, acute hunger, and the refusal to pay the Uyghur girls until they have worked off their trip. An already tense story becomes even more so as the bosses try to force some of the girls into sexual situations. Readers will admire Roshen’s resilience in the face of stark exploitation. Ages 14–up. Agent: Marietta Zacker, Gallt & Zacker Literary.

Narrator Tavia Gilbert takes listeners on a difficult journey in the voice of Roshen, a 16-year-old Muslim Uyghur from rural China who is forced to leave her family to work in a factory thousands of miles away. Roshen's fear and horror at her new life are skillfully conveyed by Gilbert; her tone and characterization perfectly reflect the bleak situation Roshen and the girls she works with find themselves in. The Uyghur girls bond as they suffer cultural discrimination, inhumane work conditions, and exploitation by factory bosses. Gilbert's compassionate portrayal highlights Roshen's transition from a scared farm girl to a brave and empathetic leader. This workplace story, based on the actual experiences of Uyghur people in China, is a haunting account of strength and survival. E.A.B. � AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine