About this item
From an exciting new voice in literary fiction, a transfixing and timely story about a young Jewish American expat who assumes the helm of his family's shoe factory in present day southern China, and his burgeoning relationship with a seamstress intent on inspiring dramatic political change, for fans of Adam Johnson, Mischa Berlinski, and Madeleine Thien. Alex Cohen, a twenty-six-year-old Jewish Bostonian, is living in a remote village in southern China, where his father runs a family-owned shoe factory. Lost and searching, Alex reluctantly assumes the helm of the company, absorbing the generations-old secrets of the trade from his loving but neurotic father. As Alex explores the plant's vast floors and assembly lines he comes to a grim realization: employers are exploited, regulatory systems are corrupt and Alex's own father is engaging in payoffs and bribes to protect the bottom line.
About the Author
Spencer Wise's family has been in the shoemaking business for five generations. In addition to working at a shoe factory in South China, Wise has professional experience ranging from gutting chickens and selling ginsu knives to editorial work at Sports Illustrated and Time Out New York. His writing has appeared in Narrative magazine, Hayden's Ferry Review, The Florida Review, and New Ohio Review. He is the recipient of the 2017 Gulf Coast Prize in nonfiction and a Vermont Studio Center fellowship. He has a PhD from Florida State University in creative writing and teaches at Augusta University.You can learn more about the author at spencerwiseauthor.com
