Factory Girl

Think you have it tough going to school from 9:00 to 3:00 every day? Try working in a garment factory from 7:00 am to 6:15 pm six days a week! Factory Girl tells the story of Emily Watson, based on what life was like for real child labourers 100 years ago. In between chapters about Emily’s life is information about all kinds of work kids used to do—and it reminds us that in other places in the world children are still working in dangerous situations. You’ll be shocked to realize what a hard life many children your age and younger led in the cities of Canada and the United States in the early 1900s. The book is filled with black and white photographs of kids in factories and on the streets which show how desperate their lives were. And it’s not just about girls—there’s lots of stuff in here about boys’ jobs, too!