Sold on a Monday

Never underestimate the power of a photo…

A sign in a yard – 2 children for sale – caught the attention of struggling reporter Ellis Reed. It’s the Great Depression and people take desperate measures to survive. Ellis snapped an innocent enough photo of the sign and the children, never intending that the photo be published.

In 1931 many people lost everything - their jobs, their houses, and means of making a living. People are living with breadlines, rationing, and hard decisions each day. Every day children are being sold or dropped off at churches and orphanages. Too many mouths to feed.

But the sight of these children is a gut-punch to Ellis, who has a father he can never please and has lived with the belief that when his show more brother died very young it should have been him instead.

Lily Palmer is a secretary at the same newsroom where Ellis works. She guards her own secret, a secret that she believes could cost her the job and her rooming accommodations if revealed. It is Lily that recognizes the power of Ellis’ photo. Unknown to Ellis, Lily includes the photo with the other photos Ellis took on his assignment that day. Thus is sparked a chain of events that changes several lives – his and Lily’s included.

This compassionate story reveals the heartache of a mother who is forced to give up her children. A mother who tried to ensure her children would have a better life than she could them, but was sorely betrayed. Ellis and Lily set out to right a wrong but find that it may cost them their lives.

The story was inspired by the sight of a photo the author came across online in a 1948 Indiana newspaper. The photo showed four children huddled together by a sign that read 4 CHILDREN FOR SALE. Also in the photo is the mother shielding her face from the camera. The characters in SOLD ON A MONDAY are memorable. They are flawed, but you still love them. They make mistakes, but they own up to them. They hurt, they cry, they love. These are people you can relate to.

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

Sold on a Monday started off a bit slow for me, but I’m glad I stuck with it because the writing and the story really pulled me in. Kristina McMorris does a great job creating a vivid historical setting and building emotional depth without overdoing it.

The premise—based on that haunting photo of kids with a "children for sale" sign—was heartbreaking and made for a really unique story. I liked how the author explored the impact of one decision and how it rippled through so many lives. The characters felt real, and their struggles were relatable even set in the 1930s.

Once it got going, it was hard to put down. A powerful, well-written read that I’d definitely recommend if you're in the mood for something emotional with heart.

Great writing happens when a book is capable of evoking strong emotions, even if they are quiet, strong emotions. Kristina McMorris has proven her genius in creating an interesting story about troubled people and times which packs a powerful punch.

As McMorris states in the Author’s Notes, the premise of the book begs a question; “Specifically, what if a reporter’s seemingly harmless choice to stage a photo led to unintended consequences for everyone involved?” But is staging a photo or stretching the truth ever an excuse for honesty? The characters in “Sold On A Monday” have to grapple with these issues and come to terms with faulty judgments, decisions and actions.

The story starts in August, 1931, in a small town in show more Pennsylvania. It was a time when men wore starched collars, suits and fedoras, women wore skirts and dresses and always gloves. The effects of the Market crash of 1929 were still being felt. It was a hard time for so many, the breadlines were long, people were always hungry, not many jobs to be had. Newspapers ruled the world of communication.

I loved the characters. Ellis Reed who can’t stop stumbling as he strives for the newspaper career he has always wanted. Lillian Palmer, bright, strong, secretary to the Editor of the Philadelphia Examiner, holds her secrets close. Both of their families are integral to the story and the importance of family strife and support is subtlety evident throughout. The parts attributed to Geraldine Dillard and her children Ruby and Calvin may just rip out your heart with sorrow and anger. This story has so many moving parts but they all coalesce to make a well constructed story. Heart wrenching and uplifting. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for a copy show less

"4 CHILDREN FOR SALE"
“ Inspired by an actual newspaper photograph that stunned the nation”

The book tells a vivid and heart breaking story that is set against the harsh landscape of the Great Depression. First we learn of the photo and then the story unfolds into something so much deeper. The sign is a last resort. It sits on a farmhouse porch in 1931…but it could have been found anywhere in an era of breadlines…bank runs… and broken people with broken dreams. It could have been written by any mother facing 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…never meaning it for publication. But when it leads to his show more big break, the consequences are more devastating than he ever imagined. They say “A picture is worth a thousand words” but maybe the truth of the story behind the picture is worth a thousand or so more.


Actual photograph that appeared on the porch and inspired this book. show less

Brilliant!

Against the background of the 1931 Philadelphia, during the Prohibition and the depths of the Great Depression, hardship is but a moment away. That moment is captured by newspaper man Ellis Reed. Accidentally really. Ellis had taken the photograph of two young children huddled under a sign "2 children" for sale whilst covering a a quilting exhibition.
Newspaper secretary, Lily Palmer, had seen the photo and shown it to her boss. Ellis' career was launched. The accidental destruction of the photo just prior to publication called for a hurried intervention. The picture was reconstructed using a different family, and from this comes a story that spans counties and opens the door on medical misdiagnosis, the separation of families, show more the "selling" of children, the complicity of children's homes and related social issues that persist even today. The question of what lengths parents are willing to go to in the hope of ensuring a better life for them, over against those who really do only care for themselves.
Sensitively told, this story of how two children came to be separated from their mother, and of the two newspaper people who made choices that opened up a veritable pandora's box, blends fact and fiction into an overwhelmingly brilliant story with heart!
Powerful reading!

A NetGalley ARC show less

Confession - I jumped at the chance to read this book based solely on my absolute love for the author's work, particularly The Edge of Lost, which swept me away. I can safely say that Sold on a Monday did not disappoint.

Inspired by a real photograph, the author dives into one truly heartbreaking part of the Great Depression as she creates a story behind the photograph of two small children, shown with a sign for sale. Photographer Ellis Reed is no saint; struggling to get by and move up, he takes a photo and then makes a decision that will haunt him. He is truly flawed, struggling to prove himself to his father and to get ahead, and that is what makes him such a fascinating character for me. He's not bad, but desperation makes people do show more things they otherwise wouldn't, and some problems take on a life of their own.

Likewise, Lillian Palmer, a secretary at the newspaper that publishes Ellis' photo gets caught up in the drama as he tries to set things right. Her own story is complicated and fascinating, with secrets of her own.

This book offers a little of everything - beautiful prose, a gripping story, a little romance, drama, tension, and an unexpected twist or two.

Fans of historical fiction, this one is for you.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. show less

How far would you go if you were desperate to eat? Would you go so far as to sell your children? In Sold on a Monday, Kristina McMorris writes about the heartbreaking tragedy of families in the 1930s who sold their children so that they could eat. Ellis Reed stumbles across two brothers playing in front of a sign that says “children for sale.” Stunned, Ellis takes a picture of them and develops it in the darkroom of the paper where he writes a society column. Lily, the chief’s secretary and wannabe reporter, stumbles across it and takes it to the chief. Suddenly, Ellis is given his big break: a chance to write a story that matters. But when an accident ruins the original picture, Ellis has to go back to take another. The family, show more however, is gone. Desperate for the story and his big break, Ellis pays a mother to take a picture of her children with the sign instead. As the accolades and donations pour in, Ellis is uneasy about just what he sold on that Monday. But when he goes back to give them money and discovers the children have been sold, Ellis and Lily work together to find out what happened to their mother and where the children have gone. As they discover that all is not what it seems, they race against the clock, risking their jobs, their freedom, and even their lives, in a desperate attempt to put a family back together.
Kristina McMorris paints a bleak picture of life in the 1930s, when mobsters ruled, Prohibition reined, and families were desperate. Those who had jobs did what they could, however unethical it might be, to ensure that they, too, weren’t out on the street. As Ellis Reed sinks lower than he ever planned, Lily and their quest for justice and a burning desire to put right their mistake begins to pull him out of the muck. McMorris’ characters are three-dimensional and care fiercely about doing the right thing. Their flaws make them stronger and give them their humanity. If you are looking for a historical fiction book based around what people faced in the Great Depression, look no further than Sold on a Monday. McMorris’ writing is full of heart, wit, and an urge for justice that doesn’t give up. Join Ellis and Lily on their adventure to find Calvin and Ruby; you won’t be disappointed! show less