There is no way I can do justice to this review. The novel was so beautifully written and after finishing the book, I continued to think about it. There is so much substance to this story, to these characters and their plights. I liked all of the characters and understood the emotional baggage that weighed each of them down. Their actions, even the wrong ones made sense.

It started with a photograph and then a posed lie. In the 1930's children were a commodity. Children could be used to fill a void or work in servitude. Ellis Reed, a struggling photographer during the depression takes a poignant picture. Lily, a secretary and would be writer who helps Ellis, has a few secrets of her own. She struggles with her participation what needs to be done to right this wrong.

I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The story starts with a picture of the Great Depression. It is a photograph including a sign reading, two children for sale. Horrible, yes, but imagine a single mother who is sick, and possibly terminal with no means to care for her children or herself. It’s the 30’s and everybody is struggling to survive. There are no agencies available to help her like there are today.

Hard working wannabe photojournalist Ellis Reed, has captured the image of two young boys offered for sale on the porch of a downtrodden house in the community of Laurel Township, Pennsylvania.

Disturbed, Ellis nonetheless brings his roll of film to the office, knowing that shooting unsanctioned photographs on the company funds is against the rules. Enter into our story, secretary Lily Palmer, an unwed mother whose four-year-old son Samuel lives with her parents out of town. This part of her life is a guarded secret. Lily discovers Ellis’ picture. She immediately realizes she has captured an important story, and arranges for the editor in chief to see them. He commissions a feature from Ellis, based on the circumstances surrounding the picture. But Ellis is reluctant to track down and interview the children and their guardian for the article.

Unfortunately, Ellis’ negative and picture are ruined in a printing accident, but since this story is huge for his career, he’s compelled to find a proper replacement. The children and their original guardian are long gone. Thinking no one will be the wiser, he substitutes Calvin and Ruby Dillard, two children he finds in the same neighborhood, for the children in his original picture. He lies to their mother Geraldine to obtain consent, allowing him to photograph her children. It may provide after all a little needed money.

Ellis’ article and accompanying pictures land him a job with the New York Herald Tribune, where he hopes to bring attention to the plight of other suffering children in the world. As lies always do, it all comes back with a fury where many are hurt because of his deception. The innocent children and mother Geraldine are the ones who suffer. Since this is all their fault, Ellis and Lily team up to track down the kids and make sure they’re being taken care of. The path is long and difficult. Remember this is the 30’s and not the ready information world we live in today. The cover up throws Ellis and Lily into mafia violence and the world of black market adoption.
A tender love story enriches the complex plot, giving readers a story with grit, substance, and rich historical detail. Rarely has a book affected this reader so emotionally.

One picture can change the trajectory of a person's life. This is a heart wrenching story where the power of journalism and images can draw people in. Set during the Great Depression where many families were unable to put food on the table and children were often sold, left and dropped off community services locations, the novel follows journalists that wrote about two children for sale, but were they really. This tale will stick with you long after you are done reading.

Although Kristina McMorris's Sold on a Monday explored issues that truly occurred during the Great Deoression, i fould it to be very predictable.. The characters were well developed and relatable but I knew the story's conclusion before I got halfway through the book. I found it to be quite readable but the storyline was just okay. It would not be on the top of my list of reccomended books.
Thank you for giving me the the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

I love books written in this era and this one did not disappoint. I think the writer
does a wonderful job of taking us back there. She also as a huge plus,
explains at the end of the book how she got the story. I loved this book. I have
been sick so it took me a while to do a review. It's as wonderful on the
inside as it is on the cover!

I was intrigued by the cover of this book when I saw it. To think that people could actually sell their children was unbelievable.

This story begins with a new reporter on a newspaper seeing a sign with 2 children saying 'children for sale'. He drives away but the image haunts him and he returns to find the children gone, but the sign still laying on the ground. Ellis sees this as an inspiration for a story which will get him attention at the paper, so he spots a couple of local children and pays their mother to allow them to recreate the image he saw. What happens after that is a story of lost children, heartache, desperation and other factors that kept me turning the pages of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and was interested to discover that the author was inspired by an actual photograph that was spotted from the same era in the 1930's when times were tough and people were desperate. Thank you to Net galley and Sourcebooks for the ARC of this book for an honest review.

Sold on a Monday is a beautifully written story that is based on depression era desperation, when families, who couldn't afford to feed their children, sent them to relatives, or gave them up for adoption. This novel is based loosely on a case that some children were sold to less than scrupulous people.

Ellis Reed, a struggling newspaper reporter, is out in the country outside Philadelphia, where he finds two children perched on a porch holding up a sign, "Two Children for Sale". .After taking a photograph, his career takes a turn, he is faced with a dilemma that will veer his career path to a place not suspected. Ellis then needs to decide if doing the right thing is worth the career ending choice. The book examines ethics, as well as a sweet budding love story embedded in family dysfunction and struggles.

Kristina McMorris has developed characters that are relatable and heart warming, as they make mistakes and attempt to do what's right, all within a great story.

I highly recommend this novel to others who enjoy historical fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Kristina McMorris for the ARC to review. I am a fan of historical fiction and I was drawn to this book by the cover. I have never read anything by Kristina McMorris before, but I will more of her stories. I really enjoyed this one.

It made me think of my Grandfather. My grandfather grew up in the depression. Several of his younger brothers were placed in an orphanage, because there was no one who would take them. My grandfather was able to secure a job. He took his brothers out of the orphanage, after he got two of his Aunts to take his brothers in, as long as he sent them money, This is one, of many, of my grandfathers stories of the Great Depression.

Ellis Reed stages a photo to replace the one he lost. Ellis and Lilly, the chief's secretary, want to find out what has happen to these children and so the story begins. We get a look into the lives of Ellis and Lilly. There trials and tribulations. And then the children's mother shows up at the paper, they know what they must do.

A captivating story, of a very depressed time in our history, beautifully done. A must read.

Heartwrenching, Heartwarming and very Memorable. Young photographer Ellis, is snapping pictures of two young boys sitting on their porch on a sweltering summer day. When he brings his camera more into focus, his heart breaks when he reads the ragged sign by them "2 Children For Sale".

This story is inspired by an actual newspaper photo that ran in Valparaiso, Indiana in 1948. Ms. McMorris does a thorough job of giving us a tender story with wonderful characters, most especially Ellis and Lily, who make a formidable team. Highly recommend reading.

**Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley in exchange of an honest review.**

Sold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris was inspired by an actual photo that appeared in a paper that was reported to be of a mother selling her children. In this book a reporter writes an article using a similar staged photo and that article and photo sets a chain of events into motion that will end up changing several people's lives. Lots of drama and activity in this riveting tale. Read and enjoy!

The history behind the novel is fascinating. I did my own research on the subject and found it very interesting. I felt the book was softly written. Could of been more intense/more elaborate. I would consider the novel a soft read. A recommendation for book clubs only because there would be a great discussion on the subject.

I enjoyed this book but wished it had spent more time focusing on the children than the adult characters. I felt there were a couple of unnecessary side plots and that the ending was diluted and rushed.

Historical fiction spun from a photograph that was likely a fiction, yet picked up and carried by newspapers far and wide during the Depression. This might-have-been tale is fast and gripping and fills modern readers with the comfort of knowing such awful things can’t happen now. As long as they don’t read about today’s news too closely. Very little has changed for those without financial resources in the face of medical bankruptcy and isolation.

Sold on a Monday was a gripping historical fiction novel about survival during the depression in 1931. and being torn between being ethical or having success. Ellis Reed, a newspaper reporter, happens on two children perched on a porch holding up a shocking sign. After taking a photograph and developing it, his career takes a turn, where he is faced with a virtuous dilemma that will snowball his career path to unknown depths. Ellis has to decide if doing the right thing is worth the possibility of his newfound success ending. Throughout the tale, there is a sweet love story budding, family struggles, and constant quandary of morality.

Kristina McMorris developed interesting characters that you wanted to rut for as they made life-altering decisions. A sequel would be perfect for this book. You won't want to miss this one! I was stunned and compelled to keep reading this mouth-dropping tale.

I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

This book made me cry. It is not often that a writer can stir a reader, especially one who reads as much as I do, to tears. From the description, I expected a good story, it was so much more. Ms McMorris makes you feel a mother's desperation, so desperate she will part with her children for the good of the whole family. The story that follows this act, while fiction, could be true today in so many places. Read this with the tissue box handy.

The cover of this book is heartbreaking and definitely entices you to read for more info. Set during the Depression, a photographer spots two children seated beneath a sign that reads "2 children for sale". Intriqued, he snaps the photo. The photo is brought to the attention of the editor who sees this as a surefire publicity boon for the newspaper.
What is the story behind this family so obviously in need?
At what point does a person abandon their ethics to succeed?
This is my first book by this author and it's apparent that she can tug at heartstrings.
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

tl;dr: Treacly melodrama with all the cliches you can think of.

Sold on a Monday was a fast read. That's the only positive I've got.

Probably contrary to everyone else, I thought this was a quasi-historical...thing that had characters who followed the path of every cliche that's possibly ever exsisted all the way to their inevitable happy ending.

So. Not. Good.

ARC note: I read an ARC of this. It (probably no surprise if you've read this far) did not inform my review of Sold On Monday.

Mild spoilers:


I'd have given the novel two stars if the story had ended with the kids who got sold grown up to be either serial killers or rescuers of abandoned children.

Heartbreaking and a heartwarming novel. This is a new author for me, first book I have read. I generally do not like reading books that take place many years ago but this one intrigued me. At first it was a slow read but I stuck with it because I wanted to finish it. It really makes you think and it gives you chills even thinking about selling your children. It was a great read, the characters were likeable but it just did not give me closure. The ending felt like there was more to the story.

I have to be honest. I struggled with this book for the first few chapters. It just didn't pull me in right away. I almost didn't go back to it. But I kept on and things started to really pick up. I loved the relationship between Ellis and Lily. All the characters were well developed t, the settings descriptive and the oft time funny lingo of the times (the word "swell" for instance LOL) created an authentic atmosphere. There were gangsters, smoky speak easys, and gin served in teacups... The plight of the sold children was incredibly compelling and well told. Would probably make a great movie! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

McMorris's portrayal of the financial difficulties of families during the depression gives us a glimpse of the ways desperate people try to care for their children, and of the moral dilemmas that can arise out of those needs. Her characters are believable and struggle with their own issues in trying to right wrongs and solve problems they have created. Part adventure and part romance, characters Ellis and Lily wade through major issues of the Great Depression including dealing with gangsters, Prohibition, incurable disease (tuberculosis), and poverty. This is an intriguing book that I read in a day.