The Paper Daughters of Chinatown

By: Heather B. Moore

Narrated by: Nancy Wu

Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

A powerful story based on true events surrounding Donaldina Cameron and other brave women who fought to help Chinese-American women escape discrimination and slavery in the late 19th century in California.

When Donaldina Cameron arrives at the Occidental Mission Home for Girls in 1895, she intends to teach sewing skills to young Chinese women immigrants, but, 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 - brings Chinese young women to America to sell them as slaves. With the help of Chinese interpreters and the Chinatown police squad, Donaldina becomes a tireless social reformer 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.

©2020 Heather B. Moore (P)2020 Shadow Mountain

Quiet but powerful story

Human trafficking is such a horror. This true story of the early fight against it brings to light how much of a difference a single person can make in helping heal the world. Highly recommend this read!

Intense and true

Excellent writing, story is grim and not light reading. The truth of it is staggering.

wait for it

So I had no idea what to expect with this book, I added it with no pre-knowledge about Donaldina Cameron or her work. I had just finished Circe, and the switch in narrator was jarring at first, with the Scottish accent seeming campy at first. I honestly thought I had choose a bad romance novel. However, I stuck it out and by the second chapter I was hooked. The narrator does a great job distinguishing between all the voices, adding the right amount of drama when needed. Even though this is a fictional account, enough history was present that when I finished the book I started looking for more on Donaldina and the mission home. This was an "easy" listen in that there was no graphic sexual content despite the topic, and only mild violence. I would feel comfortable with my preteen daughter reading this as a way to introduce the topic of historic and present day human trafficking.

Grandma Moses for young Chinese girls

Much like the formidable and amazing Grandma Moses of the Underground Railroad, this historical fiction offers a snapshot into a decade of this remarkable woman's life.

This active slave trade was happening 50+ years after US slavery was abolished. As often happens with social change, a few are on the front lines, but there was also a support system. Some of that is woven into the narrative.

By setting Cameron's life within fiction, the author captures details and nuances of a bigger picture. The fiction is the background, landscape, ambience and context of this incredible and important story. Human trafficking continues to this day, even in the US.

Nancy Wu does a fine job with the narration, with distinct voices for each character. Definitely worth the time and credit, in this reader's humble opinion.

very hard to hear.

story is written very well but it is sickening to see and hear what mankind is willing to do to other mankind.

Page Turner

Fictionalized true story of Chinatown, in San Francisco, deep, dark history of prostitution. Fascinating and educational.

good stuff

I struggled to start this one, but once I committed I was hooked! historical fiction is my fave! I love to learn about the times and hear an entertaining story line.

Paper, daughter

It was a very interesting book about how they rescued and save the Chinese children and the prostitutes
in the 1800s. Very educated, and well written.

The Paper Daughters - unforgettable story of perseverance and resilience!

Of course I had an idea about what the paper daughters would be about. However, the way Heather Moore developed these characters into living, breathing, human beings, both the Chinese girls and Dolly, has made them unforgettable in my mind. Throughout the book, I often stopped and Googled images of the Cameron house, San Francisco’s Chinatown, and Donaldina Cameron. What is so sobering is that the story, this war, it’s still being fought on other fronts. We have Tim Ballard, but we need more people with courage like he and Dolly. The story definitely moves you to do something.

Captivating!

If you're a fan of historical fiction than this is a book you must read. After finishing this I'm inspired to learn more about Donaldina Cameron and the impact she had on exposing the underground prostitution world in San Francisco. She truly was a pioneer for women's freedom and rights.