Sold on a Monday

Lily’s experiences as a mother distinguishes her motivations for helping Ruby and Calvin from Ellis’s. How do her experiences as a mother inspire her to act on behalf of Geraldine Dillard? Does Ellis always agree?

Ellis decides to use the Dillard children in the picture for the article, which sets off the story’s chain of events. Do you agree with his decision, regardless of the outcome? Is it a decision you could imagine making if faced with a similar ethical dilemma?

Geraldine’s character transforms from someone who initially appears meek to a much stronger person. What are the key events that develop Geraldine’s character?

Children’s labor is a key part of this story since it was set in the Depression Era. The novel gives many examples of children’s employment and treatment that are no longer acceptable today. Compare and contrast the treatment of children today with that of children in the novel.

The story focuses quite clearly on how grief and grieving can affect a person’s ability to continue on after the death of a loved one. How does grief affect Ellis, his father, and their relationship?

The author makes use of colloquialisms and rural dialect to help set the context for this story. How important is this writing style for presenting this story, which is based on a time period of nearly 100 years ago? Do you think McMorris uses this writing technique to its fullest advantage?

The role of family is a key theme in this book. Each family has been forced to make critical decisions about the children that forever changed their lives. Compare and contrast the decisions made by Lily’s family and the Millstone’s family. How did those decisions affect how Lily and Sylvia’s lives turned out?

The mob, or more specifically the Italian mafia and the Irish mobsters, were a permanent fixture on the front pages of newspapers in the early 1930s for their illegal and often violent activities. Yet McMorris paints a more nuanced picture of mob activities and mobsters themselves. Please discuss the mob in this novel, and consider Ellis’s relationship with the mob and his successful career in New York City and in Max Trevino’s decision to return Ruby and Calvin to their mother.