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Banned & "Sold"
Book Talk & Discussion
Saturday, October 10
3:00pm - 4:30pm
Downtown Library
Meeting Room 1B/C Combo"Sold" by Patricia McCormick tops banned and challenged books lists. What about this book has led to so many challenges? What can you do about censorship? Join us to learn more. Age 18 and up.
In honor of Banned Books Week (October 4–10), we'll be discussing book banning, censorship, and your role in protecting the freedom to read for all people. We'll also be discussing Sold by Patricia McCormick, which has the dubious distinction of being at the top of current banned and challenged books lists. What is it about this book that people take issue with, and what can we learn from this powerful story? Join us for this afternoon of discussion.
The first 50 participants will also receive a free copy of the book to read and pass on.
Book summary:
Lakshmi is a 13-year-old girl who lives with her family in a small hut on a mountain in Nepal. Though 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. 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 by the co-author of I Am Malala (Young Readers Edition), this powerful novel renders a world that is as unimaginable as it is real, and a girl who not only survives but triumphs.
Downtown Library
The Downtown Library is in the heart of Downtown Bloomington, located right on Kirkwood Avenue. It provides a variety of meeting rooms, spaces for children and teens, a digital creativity center, and much more.