The Paper Daughters of Chinatown by Heather B. Moore, Book Review (Based on a true story)

Book Summary:

When twenty-six-year-old Donaldina Cameron arrives at the Occidental Mission Home for Girls in 1895, she intends to stay for only one year to teach sewing skills to young Chinese women. Within days, she discovers that the job is much more complicated than perfect stitches and even hems. San Francisco has a dark side, one where a powerful underground organization—the criminal tong—buys and sells Chinese girls like common goods. With the help of Chinese interpreters and a local police squad, Donaldina works night and day to stop the abominable slave and prostitution trade.

Mei Lien believes she is sailing to the “Gold Mountain” in America to become the wife of a rich Chinese man. Instead she finds herself sold into prostitution—beaten, starved, and forced into an opium addiction. It is only after a narrow escape that she hears of the mission home and dares to think there might be hope for a new life.

The Paper Daughters of Chinatown throws new light on the age-old scourge of human trafficking. The heroes who fought this evil and the victims who triumphed over it more than a hundred years ago offer a bright example of courage and determination for anyone wishing for a better world. 


My Review:

Stop everything and slow your roll. This book is a must-read. Not because it is some love story that makes you feel good, but because it is a gripping story of a woman who devoted her life to saving Chinese girls and women from slave and prostitution trade. The emotional connection I felt to this historically based novel was unbelievable. I could not stop myself from reading it; I was so engrossed I found myself telling my family about it while reading it. Donaldina's story is one of heartache, love, service, and family. The people came to life and I felt each loss, each victory, each scenario Donaldina experienced. A lot of people may feel shying away from this story because it is a difficult topic. But Moore tells it in a tactful yet compelling way that keeps you reading until the end. And when I got to the end I wished there was more to read. To think that this is only a snippet of Donaldina's life and the impact she had on her Chinese daughters is mind-blowing. The Paper Daughters of Chinatown is moving and is something that everyone should read. Everyone. Bravo Moore for researching and sharing such an important story with us.

Happy Reading!!!

You can pick up your own copy via Amazon.

Source:  Publisher for review