This was a great eye opener albeit a sad read on what’s going on with the Uyghur and how they’re being treated by the Chinese government. They’re not a very well known group of people and after finishing this book it’s an eye opening experience.

Throughout the novel you follow the narrative of Roshen, who’s left her family behind and a potential fiance to work in a factory. As a reader you already have an idea on how this is going to go as factories over there are usually sweatshops with grueling horrifying conditions. What I was not expecting, and because I didn’t know much of these peoples is they’re on the bottom rung of the ladder everywhere they go. Since they don’t look like your average Chinese, they stick out as a visible minority and because their beliefs are very much different, they get treated horribly and are pretty much slaves.

You follow Roshen and a group of Uyghur girls as they toil through the factory under horrible conditions. You can feel their fear and mistrust, even amongst themselves because anyone can become an informant. What I was not prepared for, was for Hawa’s character. You already had an assumption about her because of her behavior but when she does something completely unspeakable on behalf of Roshen it was a complete blindside. The negative feelings you had towards Hawa disappears completely and is replaced with a kind of respect for what she went through.

Definitely recommended to read. It’s horrifying what these families and girls go through, and awareness is key. ( )

Everyone should check to be sure they are buying products that are not made in countries that use child and unethical labor. This book follows the story of a girl in China taken against her will from her village to work for very little pay in a factory. It is an emotional and captivating story. ( )

Literary Merit: Great
Characterization: Great
Recommended: Highly Recommend
Level: Older High School (10th - 12th)

This novel deals with the plight of the Uyghur Muslim people living in the state of East Turkestan, which is under the control of the People’s Republic of China. The Uyghur peoples are culturally and religiously oppressed. All communications and computers are heavily monitored by the government and workers are exploited in horrible ways. The story deals specifically with 16 year old Roshen, who is “chosen” to work in a Chinese factory far from home due to her ability to speak Mandarin. The muslim workers at the factory are discouraged from communicating with relatives back home and those relatives have no idea where the factories are located. The workers are subjected to long work hours, very little food and poor living conditions. They are often taken away to be used as sex slaves or for organ trafficking purposes. Roshen’s plight at the factory is quite depressing, but she always maintains hope that she will get out of that situation and return to her family and fiancée. The book was extremely interesting although quite heartbreaking. The themes of modern day slavery, sexual abuse and physical abuse while dark in nature are handled well with grace and tact by the author. It would be most appropriate for older teens due to the graphic themes discussed, but is highly recommended to introduce teens to those topics as well as get them introduced to new cultures. ( )

Factory Girl by Josanne La Valley covers some very serious subject for young adults. At first it seemed a bit slow but that was a big contrast to her life before and afterhe she has been selected. Roshen is sixteen and life seems to be off to a great start. She is a good student, loves her family and the boy that she is to marry in the future.

Then she is selected to spend a year at a Chinese sewing factory in Hubei. It is billed as a great honor to be selected but the truth is that her family's farm will be taken away by the government if she does nor comply.

She decides to sacrifice a year of her life so they can keep the farm. She has been warned that there are spies on the trip, and to only communicate to her family and one she is to be married by messages from a black internet cafe. She has a very long an uncomfortable journey with the other girls to the factory. They all go through many hardships while working there and it is very difficult to know who to trust and who to be wary of. She is forced into some very horrible experiences.

What is really terrible is that this story is based on true experiences as told to the author. . The version that I read was an Advanced Reading Copy and did not include the Afterword. I was very sad that it did not make it into this version.

The author writes with great sensitivity and gives just enough detail to let know what is good on but not enough to overwhelm the reader. This is the second book that I have read by her and I look forward to reading more.

I received this Advanced Reading Copy by making a selection from Amazon Vine books but that in no way influenced my thoughts or feelings in this review. I also posted this review only on sites meant for reading not for selling. ( )