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A review by alexblackreads
Made in China: A Prisoner, an SOS Letter, and the Hidden Cost of America's Cheap Goods by Amelia Pang
4.0
This was a fantastic book. Like genuinely one that I highly recommend for everyone. It's about forced labor and how we as consumers contribute toward that labor. It follows one specific man in China, but takes a wider look at consumerism in America, forced labor in China and around the world, and how we as a society need to enact change.
Pang did a great deal of research and did a wonderful job tying it all together. She made it personal with the story of Sun Yi, but wove his details into the culture around forced labor in general. She discussed the politics and history and how forced labor supports our lifestyle in America. Pang also discussed how it's hidden from public view, so companies can claim ignorance. I don't think much of what she says is particularly surprising, but the details are important to know.
My only real issue was that it felt like she was trying to cram too much into this relatively short book. It's about forced labor in general, but she also had a long section on Falun Gong, which is a religion that was banned in China. Many practitioners wound up in forced labor camps. It's very important to learn about, especially in the context of this book, it just felt like she didn't quite have the time for it. There were a few tangential topics like that and I wish she'd either cut down on them or lengthened the book by a good bit to include more information. It felt like it was straddling an awkward middle ground and I found myself doing a lot of outside research on topics I wish were expanded upon.
But this was brilliantly done and I would highly recommend this to everyone. I think it's an important book to read and more Americans need to take active roles in the discussion of forced labor. Pang has a whole epilogue at the end the details specifically what we can and should be doing. So please go read this.
Pang did a great deal of research and did a wonderful job tying it all together. She made it personal with the story of Sun Yi, but wove his details into the culture around forced labor in general. She discussed the politics and history and how forced labor supports our lifestyle in America. Pang also discussed how it's hidden from public view, so companies can claim ignorance. I don't think much of what she says is particularly surprising, but the details are important to know.
My only real issue was that it felt like she was trying to cram too much into this relatively short book. It's about forced labor in general, but she also had a long section on Falun Gong, which is a religion that was banned in China. Many practitioners wound up in forced labor camps. It's very important to learn about, especially in the context of this book, it just felt like she didn't quite have the time for it. There were a few tangential topics like that and I wish she'd either cut down on them or lengthened the book by a good bit to include more information. It felt like it was straddling an awkward middle ground and I found myself doing a lot of outside research on topics I wish were expanded upon.
But this was brilliantly done and I would highly recommend this to everyone. I think it's an important book to read and more Americans need to take active roles in the discussion of forced labor. Pang has a whole epilogue at the end the details specifically what we can and should be doing. So please go read this.