March 15, 2019

Sold On a Monday by Kristina McMorris

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, the Depression, Family Life

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Summary:

‘2 Children For Sale’ is the sign that captures a rookie newspaper reporter’s interest in 1931. The picture that he snaps of the sign and the children on a dilapidated farmhouse porch leads to his big break and a promotion. The publication of the picture has unintended consequences, and the reporter and a colleague set out to right the wrong and reunite the family. This is an imagined story of a real photograph that appeared in a newspaper during The Depression.

This original picture appeared in a Chicago newspaper on August 4, 1948.

Amazon Rating (early reviews): 4.3 Stars

My Thoughts:

Characters. Surprisingly, this story is told from the perspectives of two newspaper reporters and not the children. Because of reading stories like Before We Were Yours and The Orphan Train, I expected the story to be told from the perspectives of the children. It took me a few chapters to shake this expectation and settle into the story from the newspaper reporters’ perspectives. As the story progressed, I became more invested in their fight to right a wrong….but I still wondered about the children.

Writing. McMorris provides vivid historical details helping us understand the dire circumstances and the desperation of 1931. Definitely, I would have connected more emotionally with the story if it had included the perspective of the older child. Overall, this is a solid read that includes a straightforward time line, a page turning conclusion, and themes of redemption, writing a wrong, family life, and mother/child bonds.

Recommended. I recommend Sold on a Monday for fans of hisfic, for readers who might be interested in the newspaper angle of this tragic imagined story; and for those who appreciate stories about individuals who fight to do the right thing and help others at great personal risk and sacrifice.

My Rating: 3.5 Stars (rounded to 4 stars on Goodreads)

Sold On a Monday

Meet the Author, Kristina McMorris

KRISTINA MCMORRIS is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. Her novels have garnered more than two dozen literary awards and nominations, including the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, RWA’s RITA Award, and a Goodreads Choice Award for Best Historical Fiction. Inspired by true personal and historical accounts, her works of fiction have been published by Sourcebooks Landmark, Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, and Kensington Books.

Kristina’s latest novel, the acclaimed bestseller SOLD ON A MONDAY, follows her widely praised THE EDGE OF LOST, THE PIECES WE KEEP, BRIDGE OF SCARLET LEAVES, and LETTERS FROM HOME, in addition to her novellas in the anthologies A WINTER WONDERLAND and GRAND CENTRAL. Prior to her writing career, she hosted weekly TV shows since age nine, including an Emmy Award-winning program. She lives with her husband and two sons in Oregon, where she is working on her next novel. For more, visit http://KristinaMcMorris.com

Let’s Discuss

Have you read other stories with a Depression Era setting? A story about the Dust Bowl in the 1930s is one that I find especially poignant Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse (scroll down page).

Happy Reading Book Buddies!

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke

“I love the world of words, where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes

“Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

“I read because books are a form of transportation, of teaching, and of connection! Books take us to places we’ve never been, they teach us about our world, and they help us to understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley, Top Shelf Text

Looking Ahead:

Look for a review of Gory Road by Lauren K. Denton next Tuesday.

Winter TBR Update

I’ll be updating my Winter TBR as I read and review selections. I have three more quick reads to check off the list before spring! So check back often!

Sharing is Caring

Thank you for reading today! I’d be honored and thrilled if you choose to enjoy and follow along (see subscribe or follow option), promote, and/or share my blog. Every share helps us grow. Find me at:
Twitter
Instagram
Goodreads
Pinterest

***Blogs posts may contain affiliate links. This means that at no extra cost to you, I can earn a small percentage of your purchase price.

Unless explicitly stated that they are free, all books that I review have been purchased by me or borrowed from the library.

Book Cover and author photo are credited to Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website.