Sold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris

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Kindle Edition, 352 pages
Published August 28th 2018 by Sourcebooks Landmark
☆☆☆☆
About the Book:
2 CHILDREN FOR SALE
The scrawled sign, peddling young siblings on a farmhouse porch, captures the desperation sweeping the country in 1931. It’s an era of breadlines, bank runs, and impossible choices. For struggling reporter Ellis Reed, the gut-wrenching scene evokes memories of his family’s dark past. He snaps a photograph of the children, not meant for publication. But when the image leads to his big break, the consequences are devastating in ways he never imagined. Haunted by secrets of her own, secretary Lillian Palmer sees more in the picture than a good story and is soon drawn into the fray. Together, the two set out to right a wrongdoing and mend a fractured family, at the risk of everything they value. Inspired by an actual newspaper photo that stunned readers across the nation, this touching novel explores the tale within the frame and behind the lens—a journey of ambition, love, and the far-reaching effects of our actions.


This is my first book by Kristina McMorris and I was pleasantly surprised. This isn't a story of the children who were "for sale" it's the story of the reporter who wrote about them, staged a photo after his original was accidentily destroyed, and his days spent trying to fix it.

Somtimes he wondered what else he’d sold on that Monday. His principles? His integrity?
Sold on a Monday is based on a real newspaper feature written in 1929, during the depression. I particularly like stories, that though fictional, are based on real life. Works like this highlight the abhorrent reality that people went thru in those times.

Adopted? No, no. Not from what I gather, them kids were outright sold.
This book is a slow burner of a novel, yet compellingly well written and highlights this unimaginably hard time. Kristina McMorris blends fact and fiction into a story with heart. A wonderful story, harrowing at times but Ms. McMorris resisted the temptation of making things too graphic. Sometimes what we imagine is worse than words on a page. This a horrible story in that it was reality for so many, but lightened by the friendships, the day to day life, little things that meant so much when kids had nothing. What people forget sometimes is for kids, a poor but loving family is worth all the fine clothes, fancy food and ponies.

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