ISBN: 9781492663997
Publisher: SourceBooks
Publication Date: 8/28/2018
Format: Paperback
My Rating: 5 Stars (ARC) A picture is worth a thousand words, but sometimes the story behind the picture is worth a thousand more… Philadelphia, 1931. A young, ambitious reporter named Ellis Reed photographs a pair of young siblings on the front porch of a farmhouse next to a sign: “2 children for sale.”
With the help of newspaper secretary Lily Palmer, Ellis writes an article to accompany the photo. Capturing the hardships of American families during the Great Depression, the feature story generates national attention and Ellis’s career skyrockets.
But the photograph also leads to consequences more devastating than ever imagined—and it will take jeopardizing everything Ellis and Lily value to unravel the mystery and set things right.
Inspired by an actual newspaper photo that stunned readers throughout the country, Sold on a Monday is a powerful novel of ambition, redemption, love, and family.
Praise
“The sale of two young children leads to devastating consequences in this historical tearjerker from McMorris... A tender love story enriches a complex plot, giving readers a story with grit, substance, and rich historical detail.” —PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
“A vivid and original story… McMorris brilliantly chronicles the way in which a moment’s fateful choice can result in a lifetime of harrowing consequences. A masterpiece that poignantly echoes universal themes of loss and redemption, Sold on a Monday is both heartfelt and heartbreaking.” —PAM JENOFF, New York Times bestselling author of The Orphan’s Tale
“McMorris shines in this poignant and compulsively readable novel… Based upon a haunting historical photograph, and told with finesse and compassion, this story will linger long after the pages have all been turned.” —STEPHANIE DRAY, New York Times bestselling author of America’s First Daughter
"Sold on a Monday is a stunningly moving novel that takes on the Great Depression and one man's struggle with honor, ambition, and unimaginable sacrifice. Kristina McMorris has crafted a true page-turner that you won't want to miss."
—LAURA SPINELLA, bestselling author of Ghost Gifts and Echo Moon
“Kristina McMorris once again plucks a devastating heartstring… A real-life photograph stands as evidence to the heart of this novel: truth revealed, forgiveness found, and a story never to be forgotten.” —SARAH McCOY, New York Times bestselling author of The Baker’s Daughter
Behind the Story
For the characters in this story, their journey all started with a picture—and the same can rightly be said of my endeavor to write this book. When I first stumbled upon an old newspaper photograph of four young siblings huddled on the steps of an apartment building, their mother shielding her face from the camera, the sign in the foreground stunned me.
4 CHILDREN FOR SALE, it read. INQUIRE WITHIN.
The photo had first appeared in The Vidette-Messenger in 1948 and, in a brief caption, claimed to exhibit the desperation of a family in Chicago. As a mom myself, I wondered what could have possibly pushed a parent to that point. In the direst of times, I could fathom perhaps having to give up my children for the sake of their well-being. But why on earth ask for money in return? Possible answers to that question soon became the foundation of Sold on a Monday
About the Author
Kristina McMorris is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author published by Sourcebooks Landmark, Kensington Books, HarperCollins, and Penguin Random House. Inspired by true historical and personal accounts, beginning with her grandparents’ WWII courtship letters, her novels have garnered more than two dozen prestigious awards and nominations, including the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, RWA’s RITA® Award, and a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction.
Kristina’s forthcoming novel, Sold on a Monday (Sourcebooks, Sept. 2018), follows her widely praised The Edge of Lost, The Pieces We Keep, Bridge of Scarlet Leaves, and Letters from Home. In addition, her novellas have appeared in the anthologies A Winter Wonderland and Grand Central.
Prior to her writing career, Kristina was a PR director and host of weekly TV shows, starting with an Emmy® Award-winning program at age nine. She also owned a wedding- and event-planning company until she’d had her fill of YMCA routines and drunken chicken dances. Named one of Portland's "40 Under 40" by The Business Journal, Kristina lives with her husband and two sons in Oregon, where she is working on her next novel. Read More
