Red Scarf Girl was written by Ji-li Jiang and tells her story of growing up during the 1966 Cultural Revolution in China. Mao Zedong is determined to make a fairer China, and since Ji-li's family is quite wealthy, they bear the brunt of the revolution.

Ji-li's father is an actor, and Ji-li has dreams of becoming a performer as well. When she excitedly shares her aspirations with her father, he tells her to abandon it. Soon, the Cultural Revolution is in full swing; students are instructed to throw away their old school materials, Ji-li's favorite bookstore is shut down, and she finds out that her grandfather was a landlord. As a result, her house is raided, her father is arrested, and government officials approach Ji-li and ask her to testify against him, which she refuses to do.

Ji-li comes to resent her family because of their social class. No one told her about her grandfather's past as a landlord, nor did she realize how much her father was pushing back against Mao's policies. Most of Ji-li's problems throughout the revolution occur because of her grandfather's status as a landlord, so though she is loyal to her family, she knows her life would be less stressful if she did not live in her family's social class. Ji-li's relationship with her family becomes more strained, but she is nonetheless fiercely loyal to them, especially her father.