Threads by Ami Polonsky

Publisher: Disney
On Sale Date: November 1st 2016
Pages: 256
Age Range: Middle Grade/Young Adult

Thirteen year old Yuming is a girl who lives in a rural village in China. Her older brother has left for the city to find work, and Yuming doesn't want any more than see him again. One day she is kidnapped by a man, who puts her in a bus with other children. 
Their destination is a factory, which is actually more an illegal sweatshop on the outskirts of Beijing, where the children are forced to sew purses together. Yuming is stuck in the factory where she has to live in poor living conditions with the others. Not allowed to go outside, working long days under the tyranny of factory owner Mr. Zhang. She makes some friends though and together they sew a secret little plan to escape. But beforehand, Yumming is so desparate that she writes a plea for help on a small piece of paper, that she puts in one of the finished purses. That purse lands in a containter that is shipped to the USA, where it lands in a department store.

Twelve year-old Clara lives in the United States. She is still in grief of her twin sister Lola who passed away a year earlier. Lola was adopted from China, and Clara misses her more and more, and sometimes she just imagines seeing Lola, who whispers funny things in her ear. One day she goes on a little shopping trip with her best friends, and buys a new purse. Inside she finds a litle piece of paper, with a heartbreaking plea for help:
To whom it may concern, please, we need help!! The note explains that the girl, Yuming who wrote it was kidnapped and the kids are hold against their will to make purses.
After that, Clara can't stop thinking about Yumming, and wonders how she could help or save her. With the help of her dad, they try to get help from the Chinese embassy, but there aren't of much help. Later on, Clara and her parents travel to China to remember Lola, but Clara has another secret mission: to find and help Yumming.

But Yuming has already escaped from the factory with her friends. The story changes in pov from Yuming to Clara. The strongest part of this book is the beginning and the middle part of the story. This is where both Yuming and Clara go on a journey. As a reader, I expected and was anticipating the moment Yuming and Clara would meet. But hey, why didn't that happen? The author chose to not let the characters meet. At some points though they are in the same area and see each other, not knowing who the other is.
Beside this tiny dissapointment it was especially Yuming's character that stood out and was the most prominent. The succesful escape from the factory and the journey that follows with her friends is a thrilling one, especially because in the first part they are being followed by Mr. Zhang, who is cruel and destinated to find them.

The story has a few loose threads, but overall I enjoyed reading it.