FACTORY MAN How One Furniture Maker Battled Offshoring, Stayed Local--and Helped Save an American Town

Bassett Furniture Company in Virginia was once prominent in the production of wood furniture--until Chinese factories began flooding the American market with more cheaply priced goods. Kristin Kalbli's pleasant narration guides the listener through the ins and outs of the Bassetts' story--family history in the first half of the work segues into John Bassett III's attempt to fight offshoring and save jobs in the struggling Blue Ridge Mountain region. Kalbli's use of accents to portray Bassett family members and other locals helps to set the scene. She sensitively depicts the plight of displaced workers as well as "JBIII's" determination to preserve the local way of life. S.E.G. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2014]