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Content snapshot
Flag an inaccuracy →What's in this book, at a glance — five things readers want to know before they start.
Violence
Barely any
A bear encounter in the opening; factory labor conditions are demanding but not violent
Language
None
No significant profanity
Sexual Content
Barely any
A sexual assault by an overseer (non-graphic; threat and its aftermath are the focus)
Substance Use
None
No substance use
Emotional Intensity
Some
Economic desperation and the exploitation of working-class women; the psychological cost of poverty and powerlessness
What this book is about
Lyddie Worthen, left to manage alone when her family falls apart, takes a job in the Lowell, Massachusetts textile mills to earn enough to buy back their farm. She discovers the brutal conditions of early industrial labor — twelve-hour days, factory-floor noise, rising quotas — and joins the nascent labor movement. Paterson's historical YA novel is a portrait of early working-class feminism and economic survival.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
Sexual harassment and assault by an authority figure
Harsh factory labor conditions
Reader Verification
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