Brilliant!

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Sold on a Monday by Kristina McMorris    

Against the background of 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, 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

*****

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