Adversity

Ashes of Roses / by Mary Jane Auch (2002) SUMMARY: 16-year-old Rose Nolan and her family are grateful to have finally reached America, the land of opportunity. But their happiness is shattered when part of their family is forced to return to Ireland. Rose wants to succeed and stays in New York with her younger sister Maureen. The sisters struggle to survive and barely do so by working at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Then, just as Rose is forming friendships and settling in, a devastating fire forces her, Maureen, and their friends to fight for their lives. Surrounded by pain, tragedy, and ashes, Rose wonders if there is anything left for her in this great land of America.

COMMENTS: Excellent book that details the events surrounding the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York, 1911. The story is told through the eyes of Rose, a newly arrived Irish teenager and her journey to find work to support herself and younger sister. The hardships of immigrants coming to America are a focus of the first third of the book which includes the ship voyage, the Ellis Island process, and the first impressions of being in America. The second part of the book deals with Rose's search for a job, being seen as a greenhorn by other immigrants, and finding a way to survive in the big city. The last part of the book details the workers and conditions of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory and the results of the tragic fire which claimed 146 lives. The book is well researched and is written in an easy to read language. The disaster is explained in detail without being too graphic, still some may find it hard to read if they are sensitive to such details. Would make a great book for a discussion group.

COMMENTS: I have read this book on several occasions, it is one of my favorites. The title is perfect for this book. Rose is the main character and we are shown other girls named Rose that work at the Factory, two of which jump to their death to escape being burnt in the fire. Rose's best dress is made from fabric in the color called Ashes of Roses. I read the book THE TRIANGLE FIRE / by Leon Stein and this book is a wonderful summary of the details and stories featured there. ( )

#unreadshelfproject2019 - If this were classified as a Young Reader book I would have given it four stars. It is classified as YA as a bookseller, I am leery about suggesting this to a teen. While it is a great story, I feel it is not "meaty" enough for a teen reader. That being said, this is such a tragic story and it's ramifications brought changes to the work force. It's a good story for girl power. Gussie fought for better working conditions no matter what the other girls were saying about her. Then after the tragedy, Rose followed in those footsteps. Rose and Maureen show such bravery and strength. A good empowerment story for young girls, but teens? ( )

This was a little slower than the other books I have read this summer, but was a necessary pace to set up the story and introduce the reader properly to the characters. I felt both compassion and disdain for them, and by the end of the book, found it to be a satisfying read. A good young adult book. ( )

I would have liked to give this 3 1/2 stars, but unfortunately that is not possible on this site.

The story moved quickly and was interesting. I just wish there had been more about the tragedy of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire and it's aftermath. If so, I would have given it even more stars. The cover of the book shows an old photograph of the factory, which, along with the title, led me to believe the story of the fire would be a greater part of the story. However, the main character, Rose, does not even begin to walk to her first day of work at the factory until the chapter beginning on page 154 in a 250 page book!

When I read historical fiction, I hope to learn something about a time period/event in history while enjoying the plot of a good fictional story at the same time. I was able to do that with this book, but the reader has to wait until more than halfway through the book to get to the fire at the factory. The first half of the book was interesting though, and through Rose, the reader learns what is what like to enter America through Ellis Island and try to live (particularly as an immigrant) in the bustling city of New York in the early 1900s.

It is evident that the author did her research on life in New York in 1911 and the fire itself through her descriptions of certain scenes throughout the story. An early traumatic scene in a sweatshop is described vividly and the whole part of the story dealing with the fire and it's aftermath is heart wrenchingly realistic.

I would recommend this book to those interested in this time period of American history, or Irish immigration to NYC. I chose this book since I couldn't find any adult historical fiction on the Shirtwaist Factory fire (a problem I also had when searching for a book on the Navajo Code Talkers of WWII, and found a good YA book for that). While it took more than half of the story for Rose to even start working at the factory (deplorable working conditions), I did still find the book worth the read and enjoyable. ( )