Factory Man by Beth Macy

Book review: Factory Man by Beth Macy This is a surprisingly interesting story of the furniture industry in the US. Mostly based in the South, this is really story of what the globalization of this industry specifically but a map of what the globalization of manufacturing is about. The author uses the story of one man to illustrate how sending the manufacturing of furniture has ruined US based jobs. Of course, in some cases the jobs were not great ones to begin with, and the questions arise about keeping the family based industries at home, while preserving jobs, preserves a hierarchy of a system that is basically bigoted in the first place. I think she does a good job of providing information on the complicated issues that arise around isssues of employment and globalization. The issues that are identified with this book are universal, but I like the specifics of delving into one industry as deeply at the author does to illustrate the points.