4 stars Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the chance to read and review this ARC. Publishes August 28, 2018.

Great historical story set in 1931 Pennsylvania. Based on the research of a factual picture showing a sign selling 4 children on a stoop in Chicago in 1948 - the desperation of just one family. McMorris, after following up with the children in that picture and learning of their sordid life after being sold, made the decision to write this book.

Centered around a journalist who is trying to become a headlining reporter, Ellis Reed, writes a story after seeing a sign which advertises two children for sale. Having to recreate the picture, since it was accidentally destroyed, he later finds out that the children in the staged picture were actually sold. His journey begins as he tries to set his mistake right.

McMorris did a really good job on this book. Based on a true situation it had the feel of realism, as something that could easily have happened in the past. The tension builds as the story sucks you into it's world. Her characters, of which there are few, drove this story. Each character was going through their own problems and struggling to find a solution, a safe place. A sincere, absorbing historical read.

This was a very emotional story set in the 1930's when people everywhere were struggling financially.
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A reporter Ellis Reed just happens upon two small children sitting on the front steps of a dilapidated house and the sign nearby which reads: 2 children for sale and he takes their picture.

Upon its publication in the newspaper and the story that is written with it is very successful and is "syndicated" in other newspapers.

A letter is delivered to the reporter from his co worker Lily who helped write the story and he decides to follow up and see how the children are.

Lily learns the children's mother had tuberculosis and is told she has subsequently died.

The learn the children were bought by a couple to replace the child they had lost in a tragic accident.

Lily discovers that the mother is still alive and she wants to know that her children are being well cared for and she doesn't want to take them back..

however Lily feels the family should be together and so Ellis and Lily set up to try and bring the family together, observation shows that the boy is missing.

The girl received a letter from her mother telling her that she was lonely and took her son back.The mother didn't write the letter and doesn't have her son.

.Their sleuthing uncovers the boy's adoptive mother paid to have him taken to an orphanage where he was alter adopted. When Lily and Ellis go the home of the parents they are told they can buy the boy back for $40.00 They discover he is shackled to a wall in the barn.

They are able to free him and then set out to reunited his sister and him with their mother.

After a confrontation the family is finally reunited..

Heartbreaking and heartwarming.....

I loved Kristina McMorris’s last book....”The Edge of Loss”....and this is another page turning Historical Fiction story- to love - based on a real photograph.

Thought Provoking Quote —- at the start of Part 1 is so darn truthful!
“Photography is the art of observation. It has little to do with things you see and everything to do with the way you see them”. ——-Elliott Erwitt

Kristina McMorris invites us into her storytelling with warmth and ease. I picture a reading welcome room .....with Kristina taking our coats, leading us to the most comfortable reading chairs made for human bodies. A small table with her book —and a cuppa hot tea.
We, her readers, then sink comfy in our chairs and drift off to another time in history.....1931, Philadelphia and New York City. ..... The depression era. Food was scarce. People were desperate.
Mothers sold their children — SOLD THEIR CHILDREN....that’s hard to digest. Why? Isn’t that the question? They were soooo poor — had sooooo little to give. Everyone needed to eat. It was a solution to the circumstances of the times.

You’ll meet newspaper reporter Ellis Reed and newspaper secretary Lillian Palmer....
and follow their tale ......filled with loopholes — lies — regret—guilt — turmoil—doubts—and determination—leading to a very dramatic climax at the end.

I think it was just last week when I read a review by Goodreads friend, Angela — that had me pause and ponder a question....”what makes a good work of Historical Fiction”? I hadn’t thought about it —one way or another.
Well I’ve thought about more since then.
ALL THE ELEMENTS THAT WORK about historical fiction books —Kristina McMorris covered remarkably. She had it all: the setting- characters - plot- conflicts - and themes. Plus... her crafting kept us on our toes —moving in unexpected directions.
Plus....we cared for her characters- I was rooting for Ellis and Lily.

At the heart of this story - it pains us... knowing children are going to be sold off - separated from their families. A question we sit with - is...
.....is it better for children to live with a family that can provide their basic needs with food, comfortable shelter and possibilities— or be with their mother who can ‘barely’ feed them and keep her own head above water?

....This story is also about values, beliefs, honor, ambitions, and redemption.

We witness Ellis and Lily fight their own inner battles of what’s right - what’s wrong- their own issues - their independent struggles....and their working together with purpose and passion. They fall down plenty - but they grow from their falls....

As for Ruby and Calvin - ( the 2 children for sale) - they never left my thoughts .... two innocent young boys - shoeless - dirty with threadbare clothes. These little boys are sooo loved in our hearts — their quiet presence is always with us.

There is also a little romance - other family drama - and mystery .....but in the name of love and children....
This book was written with much compassion. Our author cared about RUBY and CALVIN. .....
So did we!!!

Thank You Sourcebooks, Netgalley, and Kristina McMorris

I was taken in immediately and still cannot stop thinking of the two boys and the destroyed photo! This is a totally engrossing book. A great read for the summer months coming up. I could not put it down. Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks publishing for the perusal. I am awed knowing that the story is based on a real photograph! and I keep think about Dorothea Lange and her photos during that time. This is a must read!!!

Sold on a Monday takes place in the early 1930's and highlights personal and social stressors with subsequent dilemmas in decision making of the depression era. The title takes on a dual meaning which unfolds throughout the story.

This was a great novel, based on a true story about a photo of children "for sale" during the crash in the 1920s-1930s. It started off with all of the makings of a "soon to be motion picture" but the ending was a bit rushed. The characters were well-developed and the writing is quite good. Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an ARC.

I truly enjoyed reading this book. I am always drawn into stories that are based on an actual event or happening, such as, in this instance, the publication of a picture showing a mother placing her children for sale. I appreciated the way the author brought focus to the humanity of the characters in this book, the struggles each faced with the happenings in their lives at any particular time. The storyline took a couple of different turns that I was not expecting, which added to my enjoyment, and i felt did not detract from the story. And really, as I read the book, I felt there were instances we should note where it wasn’t just about the sale of children, but also of personal values and beliefs. The story takes place in a very desperate time for many unfortunate families, where parents really didn’t know how to be able to take care of their children while facing their own dire circumstances. I recommend to other readers that you take the time to read this book and meet the characters Ellis and Lily while they attempt to help the family behind the picture...and at the same time ease their guilty conscience for what they feel happened to this family due to their involvement. I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in return for my honest review, which this is.

This would not be a book I would normally pick up, but the premise sounded intriguing. The author has a way of describing mundane events and turning them into something worth reading. I was really interested in the story, but at times felt a little lost. The characters were great. They helped me stick with the story just to find out what happened to them in the end.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review.

I definitely had some difficulty getting into this book. Not for a lack of activity, things just kind of seemed to go in a strange direction at first. I wasn't sure how it all tied in to the picture of the kids for a while there. Then everything came back around and it turned into a wild ride! It did also seem a little dramatic...well...almost like a soap opera. You could definitely tell the author was trying to go out with a bang and some of the stuff was just super predictable. Like obviously the car is not going to start when the guys chasing them with a gun kind of thing. All-in-all, I would recommend it. It was an interesting twist on a romance novel with a deeper meaning of how life changes you and forces you to grow with each situation you find yourself in.

Inspired by historical events, Sold on a Monday captured the hardships of the 1930s from a different perspective. The story of the siblings was compelling and kept me wondering about their welfare until the end. While Ruby’s story was more creative, Calvin’s story was unfortunately realistic. Many children during that time ended up in similar if not so dire circumstances.

Inspired by the actual infamous picture of a mother trying to sell her children during the great depression, Sold on Monday depicts that time and circumstance as well as explores and poses some different ideas about the family and the children on that picture in a fictional setting.

In Sold on Monday, Ellis Read is the newspaper reporter who struggles to make it big and get ahead of the competition. Barely scraping by, he takes a picture of a mother and her two children to gain the sympathy and popularity. The article actually turns out to be a hit and makes it around to all the other newspapers. This may finally be the break he was looking for. But does he have regrets or feel ashamed of exploiting the poor mother and children? When he returns to check on the family, he finds out the terrible truth of the mother and begins to research the children’s whereabouts.

Lillian Palmer is a secretary and new single mother at the same newspaper. She happens to be the one who develops the photo for Ellis. Hoping for a break and working hard to support herself and her child, she is interested to find out more about the situation of the photo. As their paths take them onto different directions, towards the end of the novel, they end up devising a plan to work together to solve the mystery of the family in the photo.

Nicely written with the old style NY City feel, as you read this story you’ll hear the typewriters going and imagine the hustle and bustle of the editors, grumpy bosses, delivery boys, busy streets etc. Atmospherically set, I envisioned the plot unfold in sepia tones like an old movie. It reads well, addresses issues of its time and the characters are well developed.
A moving read with a twist, inspired by a real published picture. I certainly enjoyed following Lilly and Ellis in their steps to find the answers.

As a photographer, I can appreciate the power a single photo can have. The photo that inspired Sold on a Monday captivated readers at the time of publication and obviously with the publication of this book, is continuing to captivate the imagination. As with any photo, it's difficult to view a photo of a mother selling her children and not analyzing it with the culture and struggles of the time.

In this novel, it all starts with a single photograph and a lie. Families are struggling as the Great Depression sets in, and one family turns to attempting to sell their children to make ends meet. While this family's fortunes' change, the sign they created has a ripple effect on the lives of another family and the journalists in this novel. Readers may find the subject of this novel abhorrent, however until recently it wasn't uncommon for children to be given to other family or to search for work on their own when there were too many mouths to feed. Young children worked in factories, on farms, or in service. While gut wrenching, the concept of this novel is only the tip of the iceberg regarding child welfare in the 1930s and historically.

I think that McMorris did a great job in incorporating cultural aspects of the time in this novel. Single motherhood, women in a traditionally male work force, and attitudes towards children are all examined in this book. For me, there was an element of the story being tied up with a neat little bow, but this was intentional by the author. The book itself is a fairly quick read, and was very emotional throughout the novel. Be prepared for some emotional upheaval when reading this novel.

First, I would like to thank the author and publisher for sharing an advanced copy of this novel with me via netgalley.

I have found so many authors that are new to me through netgalley that I have really enjoyed and want to read more from. This book and author definitely fell into that category. The book was very well written. I loved the different perspectives you gain seeing the story from both Lily and Ellis's narratives. I loved that the story began and ended on the same note. I was hooked from the beginning and looked forward to experiencing the story along with the characters as they retold it. I also loved that their story all began because of a picture and learning at the end of the book that the author was also inspired with this story by an actual photograph similar to the one she writes about. The characters had a lot of depth and interest. I enjoyed finding out their personal histories along with the main storyline. I liked that the ending was not clear and that there were unexpected little twists and turns along the way. This story had it all- mystery, romance, family drama, history- all wrapped up into one enjoyable, well written story that was enjoyable to read.

Historical fiction is not a genre I typically read, In saying that, I loved. this book. My heart broke for these kids and the time in which it took place. Such a good read.

It all started with a picture taken during the depression era of two children for sale. This photograph had far reaching consequences for the photographer as well as a host of others. The story of the newsroom, the reporters and staff, prohibition, mobsters, women’s treatment by society, families, illegitimate children, and orphans all factored into this novel. It was engrossing, well written, and quite a page turner at its climax!

Beautiful and painful! Well researched. See review here https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2366772515

I enjoyed this book. It was decently evocative of the time and place (Philadelphia and New York City in the early 1930s) and well written. Given the subject, it could have been a bit grimmer, but I’m not going to complain too much about a pleasant read!

This review was based on an ARC ebook received in return for an honest and unbiased review

I’ve always enjoyed Ms. McMorris’s work, as she creates stories that really resonate. The same can be said here with this Depression-era story about two reporters seeking to locate a couple of children whose mother had mistakenly sold them. However, what I especially enjoy about Ms. McMorris’s work is her attention to historical details. When I first started reading her books, I found myself often checking some of her facts. I’ve long since stopped checking and just accepted that she got it right. Doing so allows me to be even more transported to the time period.

The book is definitely worth the read and even includes an interesting re-appearance by one of the characters from Ms. McMorris’s book The Edge of Lost.

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC

I read this book in one sitting, it's that good!
Ellis is a reporter/photographer about to become a respected journalist when one of his personal pictures is chosen for a main article. Due to circumstance he invents this little lie which then has huge consequences.
Accompanied by Lily, the chief editor's secretary, he sets out to make things right.
Although the subject is rather sad, the story is action packed with travel and adventure moving at great pace.
The characters grow stronger along the way, taking care of each other and the people around them. The results of The Great Depression are heartbreaking, the choices people make often understandable, yet in the end love conquers all.
As with most historical fiction, this book gave me food for thought, especially after reading the author's afterword.
At least in the modern world woman have possibilities, not to be taken for granted.

I do not typically read historical fiction; but every now and then something catches my eye. This novel was just one of those and it did not disappoint.
Set during the depression; during a time when a lot of people lost almost everything. Some people turned to desperation.
A young reporter stumbles across two children for sale. A photo snapped and submitted to the newspaper. What follows is a story of lies, deceit, survival and the reporters need to make the situation right.
The author's details and descriptions make you feel as though you are right there in the novel; watching from the outside. Could not put this book down.

**i was given an arc of this novel for an honest review. Thank you to netgalley & the publisher.