[Review] Sold by Patricia McCormick

Book Title: Sold
Author: Patricia McCormick
Series: N/A
Genre: Fiction, culture, young adult, abuse

Lakshmi is a thirteen-year-old girl who lives with her family in a small hut on a mountain in Nepal. Though she is desperately poor, her life is full of simple pleasures, like playing hopscotch with her best friend from school, and having her mother brush her hair by the light of an oil lamp. But when the harsh Himalayan monsoons wash away all that remains of the family’s crops, Lakshmi’s stepfather says she must leave home and take a job to support her family.He introduces her to a glamorous stranger who tells her she will find her a job as a maid in the city. Glad to be able to help, Lakshmi journeys to India and arrives at “Happiness House” full of hope. But she soon learns the unthinkable truth: she has been sold into prostitution.
An old woman named Mumtaz rules the brothel with cruelty and cunning. She tells Lakshmi that she is trapped there until she can pay off her family’s debt—then cheats Lakshmi of her meager earnings so that she can never leave.
Lakshmi’s life becomes a nightmare from which she cannot escape. Still, she lives by her mother’s words— Simply to endure is to triumph—and gradually, she forms friendships with the other girls that enable her to survive in this terrifying new world. Then the day comes when she must make a decision—will she risk everything for a chance to reclaim her life?
Written in spare and evocative vignettes, this powerful novel renders a world that is as unimaginable as it is real, and a girl who not only survives but triumphs.

My Thoughts:

I decided to read this book during a read-a-thon because it was fairly short in length. Much to my excitement the books was very short because the story was told through vignettes. As I was reading the story of Lakshmi I was torn because I knew this is something that continues to go on in today's society; it isn't something from the past.  

Lakshmi ends up being sold into the sex slave industry by her step father. That is cruel and heartbreaking that these adults, these care takers whom she is supposed to trust, are selling and trading her like produce at the farmers market. Because Lakshmi is working in the sex slave industry I believe that she is forced to grow up a little to fast for a child of her age. She should be at school learning and playing on the play ground with her friends. She shouldn't be crying because she has to be drugged to let someone have sex with her when she first arrived at the house. 

I really loved the beginning of the story. Lakshmi is at home with her mother and baby brother. It is such a great understanding of who Lakshmi is and where she comes from. It makes you feel more for her when she is sold off. 

I would recommend this read. It was enjoyable and eye opening to something that is currently happening in the world. I gave this book a 5 out of 5 stars.