Women of the Silk: A Novel

Pei Ling is the first-born daughter of Chinese peasant farmers. Although her mother has been pregnant several times only Pei and her younger sister Li survive past infancy. When she turns 8, Pei is brought to an area of China known for their silk factories. Although she is unaware of what will happen to her once her father leaves, it is evident to the reader that she has been sold and her parents will receive a stipend for providing her as a silk worker. Pei is at first shy and lonely but slowly learns her job and makes friends with an older silk worker, Ling. After several years when Li become comfortable with her surroundings, Pei chooses to be bound to the sisterhood by partaking in the hair ceremony. Once this ceremony is over, Li will not be free to marry or work elsewhere but pledges her life to the Sisterhood of silk workers. Then as conditions worsen for the workers, it is obvious that change within the silk factories is necessary. And then when Japan begins to occupy China, the world Li and her sisters have known for so many years begins to crumble.

For me as reader this was a wonderful title and one filled with many learning experiences. In the deft hands of Tsukiyama, I felt as though I was the silk worker learning my trade and making friendships with the other girls and women. This book is not to be missed and when you finish it, I hope you will consider reading The Language of Threads which continues the story of Pei as China is occupied during WWII.


Amateurish   October 28, 1999
32 out of 41 found this review helpful

Our book group read this book and all ten people present at the discussion felt the book to be a great disappointment. We had a hard time understanding how such a childish, sketchy, romanticized book could be published when there are so many books that are better--namely Red Azalea, White Swans, Women Warrior, Joy Luck Club, etc. This book seemed like it was aimed at a young adult audience except for its sexual content and hinted lesbianism. The characters were cardboard; Pei, the main character, was supposed to "come-of-age" but all she did was grow older without any struggle that the reader could identify with.

The author seemed to have an agenda: presenting a fellowship of women that was ideal and to demonstrate that traditional marriages and childbearing didn't offer the happiness that the society of women alone could. However, this picture is not convincing. In fact, the strike the women engage in seems contradictory to the author's point. This is not feminism but romanticism of a kind.

We were totally surprised that some considered the book to be well-written. Yes, it was simple, but rather than generate elegance, the style was passive and full of cliches and lack of development and specificity. Note the description of Canton (p. 145) and see if you think the author even looked at a picture of Canton to arrive at something so vague and lackluster. Dramatically the work suffered as well. The author relied on deaths, funerals, trips, reunions, etc. for dramatic effect instead of developing conflicts.

The subject of the novel is an interesting one, but the author needed to enter the world of the silk factory through her imagination much like the author of Memoirs of a Geisha did.


Compelling and Vivid - Not to be Missed   February 18, 2001
Xoe Li Lu (Sea Girt, New Jersey USA)
26 out of 27 found this review helpful

Women of the Silk captures the realities, struggles, and infrequent joys of working women in early 20th century China. Gail Tsukiyama's elegant portrayal of Pei, a girl sold to a silk factory by her destitute parents is riveting. Pei's life, though riddled with hardship, is enriched by her relationships with other women who share her fate. The factory women enjoy a sisterhood, which bolsters their self-confidence and sense of self worth. This bond, coupled with the autonomy afforded them by living on their own without husbands, enables the silk factory women to enjoy a measure of freedom and self-confidence that was unobtainable to married Chinese women of the era. Instilled with a sense of belonging and confidence, the "sisters" gather the collective strength to stand up to the brutal factory chiefs and fight for their rights.

Women of the Silk is a compelling story of sisterhood, finding inner strength, and standing up for what you believe in. Gail Tsukiyama's writing style is flowing and well organized, making the story immensely enjoyable to read. The characters are three-dimensional and extremely well developed. Ms. Tsukiyama's vivid imagery allows the reader to actually "see" the scenes that she describes. The story of Pei and her sisters will make you think, as it provides accurate historical overviews of life in China in the 1920s and 30s. The women endure tragedy, societal abuse, and the effects of political strife while enjoying unique bonds of friendship and solidarity. I was sorry to see this book come to an end, but luckily there is a sequel - The Language of the Threads.


Lovely story w/ some insights into early 20th century China   July 15, 2000
Ellen Isaacs (San Francisco Bay Area, CA USA)
17 out of 20 found this review helpful

Women of the Silk is the story of a poor young girl, Pei, growing up in the countryside of China in the early part of the 1900s. When she is around 8 years old, her family, strapped after a few difficult farming seasons, decides they must "give her to the silk work." Without her understanding what is happening, Pei is brought to the city and left at a home for girls who work in the silk factory. The money she earns pays for her boarding and the rest is sent home to her family. The book is Pei's story of growing up with the other silk workers, the deep friendships she forms, and her coming to accept what her parents needed to do.

Although this isn't a book where a lot "happens," I enjoyed it for its rich description of Pei's world and for its graceful writing. I was interested to learn how the silk workers were among the most independent women in the culture, often looked upon as strange. Some went through "the hairdressing ceremony" to become wedded to silkwork, vowing never to be married, presumably because a woman dedicated to her work cannot also be dedicated to a marriage. They were also quite sheltered and many never saw much of he world outside their small area. Most of the characters in the book are women, and through them, Tsukiyama nicely illustrates the role of women at that time, the values and constraints they lived with, and the choices they were allowed to make. It was also interesting to see how any foreigners were considered devils, referred to as "the white devils" or "the Japanese devils." There is a stretch of the book, after Pei becomes a young adult, when the book seems to stall without a direction, but on the whole, it kept my attention and I found myself caring for many of the characters and interested to learn more about their lives.


Heartfelt Tale of Women in Rural China   June 6, 2005
Richard Sawyer (Washington, DC United States)
17 out of 18 found this review helpful

This is a simple, yet heartfelt and elegant tale of the lives and struggles of women in rural China of the 1920s and 1930s. The story centers on Pei, who as a young girl, is sold by her parents to work in a silk factory. The story evolves as Pei befriends other women in the silk factory, participates in a strike for fair working conditions, reconnects with her family, loses loved ones, and escapes from advancing Japanese soldiers. The plot is succinct and the characters are interesting, varied, and believable, if perhaps lacking somewhat in psychological depth. Socio-cultural aspects of life in 1920s-30s China are elegantly woven into the plot. Themes of friendship, love, and courage are convincingly presented. Overall, the book is a captivating read, and strongly recommended.