Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix

ISBN: 9781416911715
Publisher: Simon & Schuster (2007)
 352 p.

Reading Level: Grade 8 and up.

Summary:

Three girls from different backgrounds become friends during the early 1900s in New York City. Bella, from Italy, is employed at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory where she and many others work grueling hours, hunched over in horrible conditions for a meager wage. Yetta, her co-worker, is a vocal supporter of the union, and when there’s a strike, she is one of many who rally everyone together. Jane, a wealthy young lady whose father owns factories such as the one Bella and Yetta work in, is aghast at the conditions the girls must endure, runs away from home, and joins both the girls and the cause. As they grow to be each other’s family, learn English, and enjoy small acts of kindness, they find love and self-worth and dream of a better life for themselves and their family. All three are at the factory on that fateful day, March 26, 1911, when a fallen match kindles a fire. Will the three girls make it out alive? Turn the page and find out.

Critical Evaluation:

This novel gives readers a glimpse into a history not often written about in a young-adult format. The voices of Yetta, Bella, and Jane present the alternating chapters and give us a unique perspective of what it must have been like to be an immigrant fresh from her hometown, one who had been in America for a while, and an American who was born into opulence. When their paths cross and they become fast friends, they keep their spirits up and hope for a better future while persevering to live through their present.
The main theme and idea a reader should take from this novel is the empowerment
of women and the freedom to be oneself.

Although Jane has all she could possibly want, she’s trapped in a life in which her father is free to marry her off like livestock. As Jane watches Yetta, head held high, being led off to jail for picketing the factory, she says, “‘She’s that free,’ Jane whispered to herself. ‘That free, even on her way to jail.’” (p. 120). Freedom does not come with riches and wealth, but the ability to shape one’s life and make of it what one will, not following those who would make another person’s life what they would like it to be. At a union meeting, Yetta eerily says, “We’re like tinder, Yetta thought. Just one spark, that’s all we need . . .” (p. 108). Even though this is an obvious foreshadowing of when the factory bursts into flames, engulfing the workers, this also suggests how it simply takes a few voices to gain more power and change the rules and regulations that keeps everyone down. Ironically, there might not have been such a swift change to place safety precautions on factories if the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire had not happened, but this was also the time of women’s uniting for the vote. These changes and many others have shaped our history to make better working conditions, but there is still a long way to go, both in America and in the countries where American businesses set up their shops.

Reader’s Annotation:

Bella, Yetta, and Jane are all from different pasts and circumstances, but band together in loyalty and love in the year 1909. The three end up in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, of which the echoes of their screams reach out to readers of the present.

Author Biography:

Margaret Peterson Haddix grew up in Ohio and came from a line of bookworm farmers, then went to college where she studied creative writing, journalism, and history. When her husband became a city editor of a newspaper, she realized that having one’s boss as a husband may not be ideal, so she decided it was time to write.

Writing as well as teaching part-time and starting a family led Haddix into writing many much-loved books, most notably The Shadow Children series. Haddix’s awards include the International Reading Association Children's Book Award, the American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults Award, as well as state readers' choice lists in over 28 states

Genre: Fiction - Historical

Curriculum Ties:

This novel would be a perfect addition to an English class or a social studies class.

Haddix has crafted an historical novel that not only shares historical information about immigrants and their plight, but also captures the slice of life that was this horrific fire,
the burgeoning labor movements, and the struggle for women’s rights.

Booktalking Ideas:

- How are the conditions in the Triangle Factory different from many of the factories of today, but similar to those in other countries, as well as some of those in America?

-How does Jane change throughout the novel, especially when she learns what
her father does for a living?

-During the novel, Yetta, Bella, and Jane grow as individuals while coming together.
How does this novel showcase how women from different backgrounds and walks of life can become a family?

-Discuss the historical aspect of this novel and how it shaped worker’s rights for future women and men.

Read-Alikes:

-Before We Were Free by Julia Alvarez.

-Ask Me No Questions by Marina Budhos.

-Ashes of Roses by Mary Jane Auch.

-Lost by Jacqueline Davies.

-A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly.

Challenge Issue:

This book seems not to have had any challenge issues leveled at it. There is no questionable language, but there is violence. This is a fictional take on a moment in history, so any violence and death is a representation of what actually happened in the past.

Reason to include in blog:

I read this last year, for I wanted to learn more about the Shirtwaist Factory Fire, and this is a great take on the horror that happened, using the three interweaving voices of young girls from different backgrounds.

References:

Haddix, M. (2010). Biography. Retrieved from http://www.haddixbooks.com/bio.html

Haddix, M. (2007). Uprising. New York: Simon & Schuster.

Margaret Peterson Haddix. (2010). In Wikipedia. Retrieved from

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Mastrosimone