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The Vine Basket
Things aren’t looking good for fourteen-year-old Mehrigul. She yearns to be in school, but she’s needed on the family farm. The longer she’s out of school, the more likely it is that she’ll be sent off to a Chinese factory . . . perhaps never to return. Her only hope is an American woman who buys one of her decorative vine baskets for a staggering sum and says she will return in three weeks for more. Mehrigul must brave terrible storms, torn-up hands from working the fields, and her father’s scorn to get the baskets done. The stakes are high, and time is passing. A powerful intergenerational story of a strong, creative young artist in a cruelly oppressive society.
252 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 95 reviews
March 1, 2013
The Vine Basket by Josanne LaValley is definitely worthy of five stars. It is beautifully written and gives you an inside look into what it is like to be a Uyghur (pronounced as Wee ghur) girl. They are a Turkish ethnic group but live mostly in an area now considered as a part of China. My husband and I think he is descended from this group so I have a special interest in this culture.
The star of this little book is Mehigul, a little girl who is forced to stop her education by her father. Her brother has run off to join a political movement. Her father who is a compulsive drinker and gambler thinks that she should do her older brother's work. Her mother is afraid to speak up against the father and lets her husband dictate what Mehigul has to do. The father's poor opinion of Mehigul makes her think that she is worthless.
But Mehigul's grandfather, Chong Ata, the most respected member of the family notices that Mehigul is learning his talent and skills at basket weaving. She watches him weave and picks it up by herself. What is more is that she has a great spark of creativity. It is this creativity that changes her life. Even though the customs of this culture are very different, the lessons are the same. Parents must learn how to respect their children.
I really enjoyed this little book. I learned about the foods that they ate, the way that the Uyghur decorate their mud houses with beautiful floral clothes, the hard lives demanded in order to keep their children fed and the sand out of their faces. But most important I learned about ways that children can find to escape forced child labor, get the education that they need and get the respect that they badly need from their parents.
I highly recommend this book for middle grade children and above.
I selected this book to review from the Amazon Vine program but that in no way influenced the thoughts in my review.
The star of this little book is Mehigul, a little girl who is forced to stop her education by her father. Her brother has run off to join a political movement. Her father who is a compulsive drinker and gambler thinks that she should do her older brother's work. Her mother is afraid to speak up against the father and lets her husband dictate what Mehigul has to do. The father's poor opinion of Mehigul makes her think that she is worthless.
But Mehigul's grandfather, Chong Ata, the most respected member of the family notices that Mehigul is learning his talent and skills at basket weaving. She watches him weave and picks it up by herself. What is more is that she has a great spark of creativity. It is this creativity that changes her life. Even though the customs of this culture are very different, the lessons are the same. Parents must learn how to respect their children.
I really enjoyed this little book. I learned about the foods that they ate, the way that the Uyghur decorate their mud houses with beautiful floral clothes, the hard lives demanded in order to keep their children fed and the sand out of their faces. But most important I learned about ways that children can find to escape forced child labor, get the education that they need and get the respect that they badly need from their parents.
I highly recommend this book for middle grade children and above.
I selected this book to review from the Amazon Vine program but that in no way influenced the thoughts in my review.
February 18, 2018
Read as a potential Battle of the Books 2019 long list candidate. Definitely nominate for long list. Reading level may be too high (lexile 740) - recommend to Middle Schools.
Beautiful story about persistence and risk-taking. Set in the region of China inhabited by the Uyghur people, The Vine Basket is the story of 14-year-old Merighul, whose family's fortune has been on the decline since the Han Chinese took over their land. Her brother participated in a protest, and has run away, fearing government retribution for his activities. Mehrigul has been forced to drop out of school and stay home to help tend the family farm. She has a great artisitic talent but is forbidden to indulge it, required instead by her father to spend her time only on activities that he believes will help support the family. The father drinks and gambles, the mother is depressed and withdrawn and the grandfather is elderly and frail. Mehrigul shoulders overwhelming responsibilities for the running of the farm and household and care of her younger sister, Lali, all while trying to pursue her twin dreams of returning to school and putting her talent as a weaver of artistic baskets to use. Because of this, or perhaps as a result of this, Mehrigul misinterprets her parents' behavior and there is much misplaced resentment for most of the story. There are interesting insights into the political and cultural world in which Merighul lives. As with all my favorites, this book, which has so much sadness and heartache throughout, does have a hopeful ending.
Beautiful story about persistence and risk-taking. Set in the region of China inhabited by the Uyghur people, The Vine Basket is the story of 14-year-old Merighul, whose family's fortune has been on the decline since the Han Chinese took over their land. Her brother participated in a protest, and has run away, fearing government retribution for his activities. Mehrigul has been forced to drop out of school and stay home to help tend the family farm. She has a great artisitic talent but is forbidden to indulge it, required instead by her father to spend her time only on activities that he believes will help support the family. The father drinks and gambles, the mother is depressed and withdrawn and the grandfather is elderly and frail. Mehrigul shoulders overwhelming responsibilities for the running of the farm and household and care of her younger sister, Lali, all while trying to pursue her twin dreams of returning to school and putting her talent as a weaver of artistic baskets to use. Because of this, or perhaps as a result of this, Mehrigul misinterprets her parents' behavior and there is much misplaced resentment for most of the story. There are interesting insights into the political and cultural world in which Merighul lives. As with all my favorites, this book, which has so much sadness and heartache throughout, does have a hopeful ending.
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February 3, 20143 FEB 2014 -- head over heels cover love. Subtle coloring and lettering. Perfect.
April 21, 2017
3.5 stars
This takes place in modern time, but because it is about the Uyghur people who are dying out and still live in a way that is traditional for their people, it seems at first as if it were from an older time.
Mehrigul is no longer in school. Her older brother is gone. Her father (Ata) is always gambling and drinking. Her mother (Ana) is weak and stays in bed most days. She also has a younger sister who is in school and a grandfather who weaves baskets beautifully the way his father taught him.
When Mehrigul tries to sell squash treats on the old silk road, she comes across an American woman who takes a liking to her basket. She is asked to make more. The struggle for Mehrigul is that her father doesn't seem to want her to make any baskets at all. She does all the work at home with little help. She lives a hard life for a fourteen year old.
Although I think some of this book struggles to hold up at times, the plot is really nice. What I liked about this is that it shows that slave labor happens there. Girls are sold to work in factories. Other girls are dancers and sent to sell their bodies (They don't explicitly indicate this, but she does make a notion in a round about way at one point that girls do this).
The American woman tries to bring about providing for struggling families and sees their artisan capabilities to make a profit for themselves as she sells products in the US. This is totally really neat to read about in a fictional story about a people group we barely hear about ever. It was really neat!
This takes place in modern time, but because it is about the Uyghur people who are dying out and still live in a way that is traditional for their people, it seems at first as if it were from an older time.
Mehrigul is no longer in school. Her older brother is gone. Her father (Ata) is always gambling and drinking. Her mother (Ana) is weak and stays in bed most days. She also has a younger sister who is in school and a grandfather who weaves baskets beautifully the way his father taught him.
When Mehrigul tries to sell squash treats on the old silk road, she comes across an American woman who takes a liking to her basket. She is asked to make more. The struggle for Mehrigul is that her father doesn't seem to want her to make any baskets at all. She does all the work at home with little help. She lives a hard life for a fourteen year old.
Although I think some of this book struggles to hold up at times, the plot is really nice. What I liked about this is that it shows that slave labor happens there. Girls are sold to work in factories. Other girls are dancers and sent to sell their bodies (They don't explicitly indicate this, but she does make a notion in a round about way at one point that girls do this).
The American woman tries to bring about providing for struggling families and sees their artisan capabilities to make a profit for themselves as she sells products in the US. This is totally really neat to read about in a fictional story about a people group we barely hear about ever. It was really neat!
August 16, 2013
When my daughter was young I spent 10 years as a rosemaling artist selling painted wood with decorative flowers to local specialty shops. Scandinavians in the community had a nostalgia for crafts representing their heritage and the rosemaling I did reflected different areas of Norway. People liked that I could replicate rosemaling from Valdres, Rogaland, Telemark, Hadeland, and Gudsbrandal. I took many classes and tried to hone my craft, but I never quite had that flare that made my work stand above the rest. Not like the artist, Sigmund Aarseth, a Norwegian man whose work was so stunning it made me gasp and feel amateurish in comparison. Fourteen-year-old Mehrigul, in "The Vine Basket," is like the "Sigmund Aarseth" of basket weaving. She has that creative gift that makes her basket look original and museum-worthy. The problem is women were not basket weavers in her time; only the men in the village worked at this craft. When an American woman buys a basket Mehrigul made for quite a bit of money, Mehrigul must decide not only if she will make more baskets and break into a male-dominated tradition, but she must defy her father who has forbidden her to make more baskets because it will interfere with her chores.
Mehrigul's father needs her to help on the farm. Her family is facing a plethora of problems after her brother ran away upsetting her parents so deeply that her father has addiction problems and her mother is depressed, leaving Mehrigul responsible for the family. The family has also fallen on hard times and live in poverty. Mehrigul does her best caring for her younger sister, fragile grandfather, and farm. Her father has pulled her from school and she is in fear of being forced to work in a Chinese factory in the south. Things seem desperate until an American woman says she will return in three weeks to buy as many baskets as Mehrigul can make. But with all her responsibilities, a dust storm that has destroyed their winter storage of food, and an abusive father, the task seems impossible. It isn't until some of the adults stand up to her father that change and healing seem possible, as well as, the task of making a basket for the foreign woman.
Uyghur is located in East Turkistan where the Communist Chinese took over its inhabited lands in the 1940s suppressing the cultural, religious and ethical identity of the people. This story tackles issues of the Chinese conquering the Uyghurs taking their lands and eradicating their language and customs. Mehrigul's plight is desperate and her family's plunge into poverty creates a bleakness that lets up only when she deals with her kind grandfather, sweet sister, friend Pani, and creation of weaving baskets. Mehrigul is angry at her parents and the changes in her city. She learns to deal with it throughout the novel but it is not easy. She also doesn't recognize that she has mistaken what she thought was her father's anger to one of fear.
Mehrigul changes from a subservient girl who obeys her parents and does not talk back to one who recognizes that what they are doing is wrong and that she needs to find the strength to stand up for herself. I would have liked the father's character developed more so I could have more empathy toward him. He is shown as a man with a serious addiction and to suddenly be responsible at the end was too big of a turnabout. I like that he changed but it didn't seem authentic. However, what came across as very real is the struggles of the members of Mehrigul's family with a domineering father and the importance of having a son in Chinese culture; this is prevalent even in today's culture as it was in the past.
The plot was predictable, but there is plenty of tension as Mehrigul fears her father, the cadre, the destructive storm, the pain of farming, to name a few. I was a bit confused at first because the author drops into a close up of the action. Mehrigul's situation is slowly doled out to the reader as the political and family situation unfolds. This is a nice way to not overwhelm the reader with too many details but it can also be confusing. Or maybe it is just confusing to non-detailed people like myself. I thought Ana was Mehrigul's sister for quite a while before I learned it was her mother. I also wasn't sure how the farm and market worked. Did the family farm some days and go to the market others? Or did they go to the market in the morning and farm in the afternoon? Like I said, I struggled with the big picture at first, but eventually a setting began to form in my imagination and the questions were answered. It felt like I started out the story with a telephoto lens and as the story went along and the lens zoomed out, the plot came into focus.
There are quite a few details describing how Mehrigul makes baskets, but one element that seems missing in this craft process is a description of her grandfather being a superior craftsman who mentors her. Learning a skilled craft is extremely difficult and while the story explains how Mehrigul helped her grandfather over the years, the actual leap from beginner to master artisan seemed to come too easy for someone who had just struck out on her own. What this book does portray well is a complex character and unfamiliar culture that avoids stereotypes and touches on current issues that are true even today. This is a dialogue worth having and would be a good book club choice for older readers.
Mehrigul's father needs her to help on the farm. Her family is facing a plethora of problems after her brother ran away upsetting her parents so deeply that her father has addiction problems and her mother is depressed, leaving Mehrigul responsible for the family. The family has also fallen on hard times and live in poverty. Mehrigul does her best caring for her younger sister, fragile grandfather, and farm. Her father has pulled her from school and she is in fear of being forced to work in a Chinese factory in the south. Things seem desperate until an American woman says she will return in three weeks to buy as many baskets as Mehrigul can make. But with all her responsibilities, a dust storm that has destroyed their winter storage of food, and an abusive father, the task seems impossible. It isn't until some of the adults stand up to her father that change and healing seem possible, as well as, the task of making a basket for the foreign woman.
Uyghur is located in East Turkistan where the Communist Chinese took over its inhabited lands in the 1940s suppressing the cultural, religious and ethical identity of the people. This story tackles issues of the Chinese conquering the Uyghurs taking their lands and eradicating their language and customs. Mehrigul's plight is desperate and her family's plunge into poverty creates a bleakness that lets up only when she deals with her kind grandfather, sweet sister, friend Pani, and creation of weaving baskets. Mehrigul is angry at her parents and the changes in her city. She learns to deal with it throughout the novel but it is not easy. She also doesn't recognize that she has mistaken what she thought was her father's anger to one of fear.
Mehrigul changes from a subservient girl who obeys her parents and does not talk back to one who recognizes that what they are doing is wrong and that she needs to find the strength to stand up for herself. I would have liked the father's character developed more so I could have more empathy toward him. He is shown as a man with a serious addiction and to suddenly be responsible at the end was too big of a turnabout. I like that he changed but it didn't seem authentic. However, what came across as very real is the struggles of the members of Mehrigul's family with a domineering father and the importance of having a son in Chinese culture; this is prevalent even in today's culture as it was in the past.
The plot was predictable, but there is plenty of tension as Mehrigul fears her father, the cadre, the destructive storm, the pain of farming, to name a few. I was a bit confused at first because the author drops into a close up of the action. Mehrigul's situation is slowly doled out to the reader as the political and family situation unfolds. This is a nice way to not overwhelm the reader with too many details but it can also be confusing. Or maybe it is just confusing to non-detailed people like myself. I thought Ana was Mehrigul's sister for quite a while before I learned it was her mother. I also wasn't sure how the farm and market worked. Did the family farm some days and go to the market others? Or did they go to the market in the morning and farm in the afternoon? Like I said, I struggled with the big picture at first, but eventually a setting began to form in my imagination and the questions were answered. It felt like I started out the story with a telephoto lens and as the story went along and the lens zoomed out, the plot came into focus.
There are quite a few details describing how Mehrigul makes baskets, but one element that seems missing in this craft process is a description of her grandfather being a superior craftsman who mentors her. Learning a skilled craft is extremely difficult and while the story explains how Mehrigul helped her grandfather over the years, the actual leap from beginner to master artisan seemed to come too easy for someone who had just struck out on her own. What this book does portray well is a complex character and unfamiliar culture that avoids stereotypes and touches on current issues that are true even today. This is a dialogue worth having and would be a good book club choice for older readers.
March 15, 2020
Mehigul is a fourteen-year-old girl who lives in China on a farm with her family. She would love to go to school, but since her brother left, she is needed on the farm. However, if she stays out of school any longer, she will be sent off to a Chinese factory to work, maybe forever. There is one hope, an American woman who stopped by her father's cart and bought the pretty vine basket Merigul made.
She bought it at an exorbitant price, too. Meanwhile, Merigul's father was drinking at a bar. The woman said she would be back to buy more baskets. but Merigul has some problems. Her hands get beat up from working in the fields, and her father ridicules her for wanting to make baskets. Her grandfather encourages her, however, and teaches her new weaves. He is the only person at home who believes in her. This story gives a pretty clear picture of the oppressive rule of China on its citizens.
I greatly enjoyed this book and feel it is worthwhile reading.
She bought it at an exorbitant price, too. Meanwhile, Merigul's father was drinking at a bar. The woman said she would be back to buy more baskets. but Merigul has some problems. Her hands get beat up from working in the fields, and her father ridicules her for wanting to make baskets. Her grandfather encourages her, however, and teaches her new weaves. He is the only person at home who believes in her. This story gives a pretty clear picture of the oppressive rule of China on its citizens.
I greatly enjoyed this book and feel it is worthwhile reading.
May 13, 2013
Mehrigul is a Uyghur(WEEgur) girl. She lives in a place where young girls are sent to work in factories if they don't attend school. When those girls are needed at home just to make end's meet, their families are put in a tough spot. When Mehrigul's brother leaves home, she is forced to stay at home to help her family. Now Mehrigul is in danger of being sent away to the factories, though.
While at the market with her father, an American lady spots her plain, useless grapevine basket, and pays Mehrigul far more than she would possibly expect. Even more amazing to Mehrigul is that she offers to buy more when she comes back in three weeks. Can Mehrigul find the time and bravery to make those baskets?
It was hard for my mind to wrap around the fact that this book is set in modern times, not historical. It was eye opening to me that such issues(and worse) take place miles away from me RIGHT NOW! I also never really understood why some people refuse to buy items "Made in China". (Yes, I'm pretty sheltered!) I understand now. It's *not* because it's made overseas. It's because these innocent young girls are forced away from home to make these cheap little items in factories. It's opened my eyes to the way I will shop from now on. Now beautiful items like the baskets made to help one's family, that's another story!
Mehrigul's parents throughout the story aren't the best of role models. Since her brother left home, her mother and father have sunk into deep depressions. Her father is an alcoholic and gambles money away that should be spent on food and debt. Her mother can barely function at times due to her depression, and she relies on a special tea to help her sleep. I just wanted to smack them upside the head quite frequently! At the same time, she is also surrounded by wonderful people that love her. Her grandfather was so wonderful, you can't help but want to hug him. He's so graceful and sweet, it will bring tears to your eyes. La Valley actually has such a beautiful way with words, that she will bring tears to your eyes quite frequently. She had an amazing way of bringing her characters right off the pages.
Mehrigul has an outstanding journey with her struggles not only making the baskets, but taking on a role in her family she isn't supposed to have to take. She also struggles with her family's rapid loss of status, and the teasing and disrespect that comes with it. She is an amazing and strong character. She sometimes had a hard time keeping her place. Even if I didn't agree with her low status as a woman, that is her land's traditions. She tries to make things right, though, and for that I think she is an excellent role model for any young lady.
Overall, I highly recommend The Vine Basket, both for the amazing characters it contains, and the educational experience it provides.
*I was provided an ARC through Amazon Vine in exchange for my honest opinion.
While at the market with her father, an American lady spots her plain, useless grapevine basket, and pays Mehrigul far more than she would possibly expect. Even more amazing to Mehrigul is that she offers to buy more when she comes back in three weeks. Can Mehrigul find the time and bravery to make those baskets?
It was hard for my mind to wrap around the fact that this book is set in modern times, not historical. It was eye opening to me that such issues(and worse) take place miles away from me RIGHT NOW! I also never really understood why some people refuse to buy items "Made in China". (Yes, I'm pretty sheltered!) I understand now. It's *not* because it's made overseas. It's because these innocent young girls are forced away from home to make these cheap little items in factories. It's opened my eyes to the way I will shop from now on. Now beautiful items like the baskets made to help one's family, that's another story!
Mehrigul's parents throughout the story aren't the best of role models. Since her brother left home, her mother and father have sunk into deep depressions. Her father is an alcoholic and gambles money away that should be spent on food and debt. Her mother can barely function at times due to her depression, and she relies on a special tea to help her sleep. I just wanted to smack them upside the head quite frequently! At the same time, she is also surrounded by wonderful people that love her. Her grandfather was so wonderful, you can't help but want to hug him. He's so graceful and sweet, it will bring tears to your eyes. La Valley actually has such a beautiful way with words, that she will bring tears to your eyes quite frequently. She had an amazing way of bringing her characters right off the pages.
Mehrigul has an outstanding journey with her struggles not only making the baskets, but taking on a role in her family she isn't supposed to have to take. She also struggles with her family's rapid loss of status, and the teasing and disrespect that comes with it. She is an amazing and strong character. She sometimes had a hard time keeping her place. Even if I didn't agree with her low status as a woman, that is her land's traditions. She tries to make things right, though, and for that I think she is an excellent role model for any young lady.
Overall, I highly recommend The Vine Basket, both for the amazing characters it contains, and the educational experience it provides.
*I was provided an ARC through Amazon Vine in exchange for my honest opinion.
May 8, 2013
In East Turkestan, Mehrigul’s beloved brother has left the family and now her father is always angry and her mother has taken to bed. Mehrigul is forced to leave school and help out on the family farm. She also works the family market stall which is where her vine basket, created in the form of a cone rather than a more useful shape, is spotted by an American woman who offers to buy it for a very high sum. But her father just drinks and wagers away the money, leaving the family still on the brink of ruin. There are political pressures too with the Chinese pushing the Uyghur people to conform. If Mehrigul does not return to school, she could be sent to work in a Chinese factory. But there is one ray of hope and that is that the American woman asked for more baskets. It will take time and determination for Mehrigul to complete the baskets for her, especially once her father forbids her to do it.
I seriously could not believe this was a debut book. La Valley writes with such assurance and skill, building a world that makes sense to those unfamiliar with the Uyghur and East Turkestan. She also neatly explains very complicated politics in a way that children will understand thanks to the perspective of Mehrigul and her family. La Valley does not shy away from the difficult family situation she has created, clearly creating a world where there are no real villains just adults dealing with impossible situations.
Yet there are heroes. They come in the form of more than the American buyer too. Mehrigul’s grandfather is one of these, as he works impossibly hard and still supports her dreams and skills with baskets. Mehrigul herself is certainly a heroine as well, creating beauty with an incredible humility, taking on tasks far beyond someone as young as she is, and holding her family together.
La Valley never forgets to instill beauty into the world she is telling us about. We learn about the Uyghur rugs, music and art. We learn about the beauty of the desert, the sting of the sand, the wonder of the sudden rain, and the treasures of true friendship and family. It is in this mix of destitution and beauty that this book truly shines. It is a book that enters the very heart of the reader and takes up residence. Beautiful, haunting, cruel and wondrous, this is one amazing read. Appropriate for ages 12-15.
I seriously could not believe this was a debut book. La Valley writes with such assurance and skill, building a world that makes sense to those unfamiliar with the Uyghur and East Turkestan. She also neatly explains very complicated politics in a way that children will understand thanks to the perspective of Mehrigul and her family. La Valley does not shy away from the difficult family situation she has created, clearly creating a world where there are no real villains just adults dealing with impossible situations.
Yet there are heroes. They come in the form of more than the American buyer too. Mehrigul’s grandfather is one of these, as he works impossibly hard and still supports her dreams and skills with baskets. Mehrigul herself is certainly a heroine as well, creating beauty with an incredible humility, taking on tasks far beyond someone as young as she is, and holding her family together.
La Valley never forgets to instill beauty into the world she is telling us about. We learn about the Uyghur rugs, music and art. We learn about the beauty of the desert, the sting of the sand, the wonder of the sudden rain, and the treasures of true friendship and family. It is in this mix of destitution and beauty that this book truly shines. It is a book that enters the very heart of the reader and takes up residence. Beautiful, haunting, cruel and wondrous, this is one amazing read. Appropriate for ages 12-15.
July 20, 2013
Combining cultural geography, and themes of resistance, female empowerment, and so much more, this text by Joanne la Valley is a treasure because it conquers the culture, geography, and customs completely unfamiliar to me, and brings them to become recognized. Educating and keeping you on the edge of your seat, while introducing a partnership of business between the United States and Uyghur (pronounced WEEgur), who occupy East Turkestan, is amazing. The conflicts between this area and the Chinese, becomes familiar instantly after finishing this text. A little slow in places, but only a few, this makes you proud upon completion with the new understanding you have when you finish this text.
I remember receiving a student from Tajikistan and never knowing anything about that country. After a year, I knew so much, and you will feel the same way after this text. This also is a lesson in how all books should be written, and they would impact students more on a personal level while becoming more informed. That is to say in the least and this opens your eyes to what education should be. I am drawn to multicultural texts anyway, and this without a doubt is one.
I remember receiving a student from Tajikistan and never knowing anything about that country. After a year, I knew so much, and you will feel the same way after this text. This also is a lesson in how all books should be written, and they would impact students more on a personal level while becoming more informed. That is to say in the least and this opens your eyes to what education should be. I am drawn to multicultural texts anyway, and this without a doubt is one.
January 15, 2021
While in the midst of moving from Knoxville to Birmingham nearly 4 years ago, a lady reached out to me telling me that a colleague of hers, also an author, was a follower and fan of my blog and had recently passed away, she asked if she could send me a copy of her friend’s books. I agreed, not knowing what type of books the lady had written and didn’t think much of it. In the chaos that is moving, I received the books and boxed them up and then unboxed them and vaguely remembered that they were about Muslims in China. I put them in the to be read pile and just never got to them. Then as the plight of the Uyghurs started to be known here in the US, something tickled my brain, but nothing came of it, until recently when I realized, a lady, a non Muslim years ago was trying to tell the Uyghur’s story, and had reached out to me, and I didn’t get it, and still wasn’t getting it. So alas, I have now read the Vine Basket, and while it might not present Islam the way we are used to seeing it in life and in print, the characters do identify as Muslim and this middle grade book is a simply woven, beautiful story that gives voice to a population that is horrifically being silenced. The AR 5.0, 252 page book is a quiet book that will stay with me: the drunken father, the threat of being sent to a factory, the loss of tradition; I am so glad I read the book, and only wish I could reach out to the author to hear more about her knowledge of the region, of the people, of the culture that is being erased.
SYNOPSIS:
Mehrigul is 14, and since her older brother left, she has been forced to leave school to help her father sell goods in the marketplace. More often than not though, it is solely Mehrigul’s responsibility as her father drinks and gambles away the meager earnings the family makes. Her mother, ashamed of the poverty the family endures along with some presumed mental illness and headaches, seeps further and further away from the reality of life and the chores that need to be done to ensure food and survival of the family. Her younger sister is the only spark in a dreary and difficult life, and Mehrigul is determined that she should stay in school and be shielded from the darkness hanging over the family.
One day while in the market, an American woman approaches Mehrigul and asks to purchase a frivolous grape vine basket Mehrigul had made and hung to decorate the cart. She offers her 100 yuan, more money than Mehrigul has ever seen, and asks her to make more baskets, and that she will be back in a month to purchase them. The basket serves no purpose like the willow baskets her grandfather weaves and despite the money, Mehrigul’s father is not happy.
Mehrigul is forbidden from making the baskets for the American, and the fact that she will even return is dismissed. Her father grows increasingly cruel toward Mehrigul and keeps her busy to prevent her from making more. Mehrigul seeks solace in her elderly infirm grandfather who tries to help her find inspiration and time to make her baskets as he sees in her a gift that has value in their old culture. At one point as her father steals her baskets to take on a “religious” pilgrimage to the mountains. And her planting crops in the fields leaves her hands cut and swollen, unable to make more with just days left before the American lady is due to return.
WHY I LIKE IT:
At first I was really uncomfortable with the idea of a white American savior coming to a dying oppressed culture to offer hope, until I read the afterwards and understood that much of the story was inspired by the author’s own experience and that she worked with Uyghur’s to get the story right. The book reads like historical fiction which makes the day to day life of this modern book all the more heart breaking, it isn’t about the past it is the present, and life in East Turkestan is bleak. I like the character of the father, he is an abusive mess, yet somehow it isn’t that easy to write him off, he has his own struggles and the depth of character I found in him, in a middle grades book, is haunting. I also really like how Mehrigul’s story is so foreign to us here in America, yet her emotions and insights are universal and thus relatable. She wants to find her place, and excel, and help her family, and she is scared, doesn’t know who to trust, and takes on more than most children any where should, but often are forced to do.
The characters identify as Muslim and as a people the Uyghurs are Muslim. They say salam in the story, but only to the grandfather, and the girls all cover their hair with scarves. The father obviously drinks and gambles, two practices, not permitted in Islam. Mehrigul fastens a talisman and connects her prayers to it as a form of worship which I would imagine is cultural perhaps, and when things go awry she remarks she should have prayed to Allah swt. The father goes on a pilgrimage to a mountain shrine, which again seems off from traditional Islam, but is presented in the book instead as odd because the father is not normally religious. Islam is not a big part of the book, so it is hard to know if the representation of it are isolated to who the author met, or a larger norm of the community. Considering how isolated and oppressed the Uyghurs are, I tried really hard to suspend judgement, or offer my privileged limited critique of the people.
FLAGS:
Drinking, gambling, abusive father, anger, lying, deception.
TOOLS FOR LEADING THE DISCUSSION:
I would consider this for a middle grades or even middle school book club, there is so much going on in China and in the erasing of Islam there that this book would supplement the news and few stories we are hearing. It opens up the culture and gives it a face that is not political, but personal. The faults of the father are not glorified at all, and the discussion about his desire to hold on to culture and fear about his daughter surpassing him would be fascinating to hear from people the protagonists age.
September 22, 2013
In this book, Mehrigul dreams of going to school with her younger sister, but must contribute to the family farm and income. With her shy mother and father involved in gambling, Mhrigul is responsible for the family stand at the market, where she sells farm goods and baskets that her grandfather makes. She worried about being sent from Uyrghur to the south of China to work in a factory. Although basket making is a traditionally male trade, Mehrigul expresses her artistic talent through weaving unusual baskets that catch the eye of an American traveler.
This book is a beautiful story exploring the role of art, family and education in the eyes of a young girl who is part of the Uyghur community, an ethnic minority within ?Northern China?. While the author is an outsider to the culture, she worked closely with the Uyghur American Association while writing this story - addressing a cultural group I've never met in reading before. This is her first book! Write more, please. :)
This book is a beautiful story exploring the role of art, family and education in the eyes of a young girl who is part of the Uyghur community, an ethnic minority within ?Northern China?. While the author is an outsider to the culture, she worked closely with the Uyghur American Association while writing this story - addressing a cultural group I've never met in reading before. This is her first book! Write more, please. :)
March 8, 2017
In western China, the Uygher people have suffered under communist China rule. Mehrigul, a 14 year-old girl, has dropped out of school to take care of her alcoholic father and mentally ill mother. Each week they sell squash, corn husks and baskets at the market. If she's lucky, her father won't drink away all the profit before they return home. Then one day at the market a foreign woman notices a simple basket Mehrigul had made with grapevines. She purchases it for a large sum of money and promises to return to buy more. Mehrigul is determined to make more baskets, but her family believes it is a waste of time to create baskets for a stranger who might not return, especially when there is so much work to be done in the fields. If her family loses any more money, they might send Mehrigul to work in the city factories and have her send money home-- a lifestyle Mehrigul dreads.
March 15, 2015
I wish this had been written when my children were young so I could read it to them. That being said, I will now lovingly pass it to my grandchildren. I have always Pearl Buck and Amy Tan's writings of the people of China. This does address a part of the Chinese population, a part ripped from its soul to be taken by the Communist Government. La Valley is preserving a culture of the Uyghur that is being destroyed in our lifetimes. Beautifully written, I could not put it down. Enjoy
February 7, 2014
Until I started reading this book, I had never heard of the uyghur people. This book offers insight into their culture and the difficulties they face in China. It also gives us a look into a highly patriarchal society. A very interesting read.
January 28, 2025
Favorite quotes:
"Please send me the favor that my hands might make beautiful work. I want to make something special. And...please give me the courage to carry on."...Mehrigul knew that if she was to fulfill her prayer, she must be like a stem that swayed with the winds; she must learn to bend but not break. To yield, and yet endure.
She tried to envision the cornucopia she'd made for Memet. As she saw it more clearly in her mind's eye, her face released into a soft smile. Now she knew. She had woven happiness into her basket for Memet. She looked at the cornucopia in front of her. Anger had been woven into this basket. Mehrigul raised herself from the ground and with the heel of her shoe crushed the basket into the earth.
Bend, she told herself, but do not break.
Perhaps she herself was beginning to understand the joy and wonder of making things with her hands. Chong Ata had found his peace in his basket making. Would she ever find that peace?...The spirit and soul of the maker will give it beauty.
"She wants me to tell you that you have made an unusual basket, a remarkable one, that she would be privileged to have for her own. It is so much more than she expected."
"Mrs. Chazen believes," Abdul said, "that your grandfather is a very good artisan and there is much you can learn from him. But that you, Mehrigul, have an unusual creative strength that is all your own, and you must take credit."
"Please send me the favor that my hands might make beautiful work. I want to make something special. And...please give me the courage to carry on."...Mehrigul knew that if she was to fulfill her prayer, she must be like a stem that swayed with the winds; she must learn to bend but not break. To yield, and yet endure.
She tried to envision the cornucopia she'd made for Memet. As she saw it more clearly in her mind's eye, her face released into a soft smile. Now she knew. She had woven happiness into her basket for Memet. She looked at the cornucopia in front of her. Anger had been woven into this basket. Mehrigul raised herself from the ground and with the heel of her shoe crushed the basket into the earth.
Bend, she told herself, but do not break.
Perhaps she herself was beginning to understand the joy and wonder of making things with her hands. Chong Ata had found his peace in his basket making. Would she ever find that peace?...The spirit and soul of the maker will give it beauty.
"She wants me to tell you that you have made an unusual basket, a remarkable one, that she would be privileged to have for her own. It is so much more than she expected."
"Mrs. Chazen believes," Abdul said, "that your grandfather is a very good artisan and there is much you can learn from him. But that you, Mehrigul, have an unusual creative strength that is all your own, and you must take credit."
April 17, 2019
The book takes place with Mehrigul who starts out selling peaches and hand crafted basket's woven by her grandfather, in the street market. Mehrigul comes to find that someone was interested in her very own hand crafted vine basket that she made herself, by a mysterious foreign woman who overpays on purpose with 100 yuan. Mehrigul is happy form this and shares it with her father and explains that the woman wants more in three weeks time. The father is upset by this, and takes the money for himself and tells Mehrigul that she is to tend to her chores at the house and around the farm. As a woman, Mehrigul feels pressured to listen to her parents and follow orders, but having taste of the money gave her power and the desire for that power led her to believe that was her ticket to her own independence.
December 7, 2018
I really wanted to like this since it is about Uyghur people in China and it isn't like kid lit is just overflowing with voices of different ethnic minorities. This is not a 'own voices' book however and the whole deus ex machina rich American lady buying baskets aspect felt a little Mary Sueish/author insert.
It's important to hear about other communities especially hyper-minorities that have a huge risk of being oppressed but I'm not sure this book fulfills that need. It's rather slow and took a fair amount of effort for me to stay in the story. I see this as a hard sell for most children. If you have someone who likes real slow, low drama, slice of lives - maybe, just maybe you'd get someone. But I can't see this as viable outside of a classroom read and even then just so.
It's important to hear about other communities especially hyper-minorities that have a huge risk of being oppressed but I'm not sure this book fulfills that need. It's rather slow and took a fair amount of effort for me to stay in the story. I see this as a hard sell for most children. If you have someone who likes real slow, low drama, slice of lives - maybe, just maybe you'd get someone. But I can't see this as viable outside of a classroom read and even then just so.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 11, 2023
This was an assigned reading for my teen daughter's reading group at school. She suggested I read this one as well, as she found it quite impactful.
I listened to this via audiobook which I highly recommend. As there words in both Mandarin and the native language of the Uyghur people, I think. would have glossed over them in my own reading, but hearing them spoken was very meaning in the story, as the use of these two languages, plus English was important to the characters, their identities, and their role in the family/community.
For this book, one most leave their western viewpoint as you must be willing to step inside the culture and traditions and daily lives of Mehrigul and her family and her village. Not do so will take away from the beauty and heartbreak of this family.
I listened to this via audiobook which I highly recommend. As there words in both Mandarin and the native language of the Uyghur people, I think. would have glossed over them in my own reading, but hearing them spoken was very meaning in the story, as the use of these two languages, plus English was important to the characters, their identities, and their role in the family/community.
For this book, one most leave their western viewpoint as you must be willing to step inside the culture and traditions and daily lives of Mehrigul and her family and her village. Not do so will take away from the beauty and heartbreak of this family.
April 28, 2021
Seriously, I really hate how they are always making books about how "terrible China is" and how it "doesn't let people do what they want to do", and I'm Chinese. It's really offensive to me and it feels like people are making books only about how bad China is, and not how races in the US are being oppressed themselves. This book was chosen for "Battle of the books", and it basically gives China a bad image, when in fact, there are good things about it. I would give it 1 stars because the story is somewhat good.
March 22, 2017
An interesting read about a region taken over by China. I enjoyed the topic and characters. Mehrigul is a teen who is working on her family's land and at the market instead of going to school. Her brother left her family perhaps a year or so earlier because of protests, so she has to take care of the family now. The mother is reserved and not disinterested in taking care of the family, and the father is an alcoholic who gambles away their money. However, one day at market Mehrigul is able to sell a beautiful basket that is useless to everyone else in their village. The American woman who buys the basket also promises to come back and buy more in a few weeks, so she is suddenly passionate about creating more beautiful baskets for this woman. However, after several incidents including a storm and a theft, Mehrigul is left discouraged.
July 4, 2017
The cover art is a 5 and is what got my attention! The story is a 3.5 and a valuable read for middle grades learning about the world and values in different countries. Young girls will especially relate to Mehrigul's story of wanting to attend school and make something more of herself, but instead is required to work on the family farm. The Vine Basket informs readers of the plight of the Uyghur people and their culture that is at risk of dying out.
September 30, 2025
A beautifully weaved together story about the struggle of a young Uyghur girl struggling to maintain her culture, tradition, and language alive. I only wished that the poor brother would send them a sign he was alive. I think Mehrigul's story is one of extreme heart and strength. La Valley's writing style worked for this kind of story, but I don't think I could read another style of book with this writing style. I would highly recommend to anyone with empathy.
March 26, 2017
This half price white savior narrative reads like a freshman anthropology term paper of a student who, half baked, watched the movie version of the assigned text. Cobbled together from tweet-sized tidbits on culture and served by an all too obvious author cameo-in-spirit as the “foreign lady” , comes 2013’s most saccharine tribute to old, middle class, white lady’s fantasies of China. I mourn the real Uyghur girl whose aesthetic was hollowed out and filled with a pitiful advertisement for fair trade baskets. Mehrigul speaks in the calm and wise voice of her people--half the time. Then she takes a break from being a believable character to regurgitate near-quotes of the UN Global Women’s Report, so obviously the opinions of her western author. Too bad, La Valley. Every now and again, La Valley forgets herself and accidentally gifts the reader with a beautiful, descriptive passage. In those rare moments, we can look through Mehrigul’s eyes at the fruit drying on the roof, the stubborn donkey, the sand streaked winds. Just before you can taste the tea soaked naan or hear the sounds of the market sellers, the author flails her hamfisted plot once more and the illusion dissipates. I really wanted to enjoy this book, but could only manage it for moments. I found it hard to concentrate on its merit and poetry because of how loudly the authoress screams after every passage “Tell me I’m a good person!” Rather than thinking of the characters, I spent too much time forced to consider their real world counterparts having to entertain her, the sun hat wearing “savior” who molests their Erhu and stinks of sunblock. To you, unknown Uyghur solider of this great cultural battle against the west, rest in power. To the author and all future day-trippers into China,Go ahead and spend your money, but for fuck’s sake, stop writing novels. I know there is a legion of middle class white women who read this book and loved it, and will defend it to the DEATH lest they be ensnared by its fall from grace, and for you, I will hang a prayer flag.
May 31, 2018
An interesting story, set in an interesting part of the world -- Mehrigul is a Uygur girl under Chinese rule -- she has talent as a basketweaver, but her family life is very difficult, hampered by a father who drinks away their money and forces her to quit school. It's a pretty bleak story, though she wins through in the end.
August 16, 2018
A very easy read about a young girl searching for a greater purpose and dealing with the impacts other's decisions have on her. This last sentiment is something I think we all struggle with in adolescence, but her especially due to the political happenings around her. Also gives a very unique perspective into minority groups within China.
June 20, 2019
An interesting story of a minority (Uyghur) family in China and their struggle to survive. Fairly mature story and strained family relationships make this more suitable for an older student.
January 3, 2021
This is a really good book. I learned a lot! I wish I could weave baskets.
June 29, 2021
Reminded me of a more kid-friendly version of The Good Earth
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