Sold

I think the problem with being an adult and being a middle schooler is the age difference. We forget the maturity or the lack of maturity that a child of 12+ can have. Yet, I think it's partly our own faults. Parents want to bubble wrap their children and that's how things like this can happen. As a 21 year old college student I read this book and I never saw the true horrors of the world and I wished I did. We need to give our children the benefit of the doubt and open their minds to these things. As a society and a country we do our children and our generation little good by shutting everything away. If you're afraid of the content for your child, read it with them, make them understand and teach them how to treat this subject with respect and maturity. It's not the teachers job to do that, it's the parents and/or guardians. We need to step up to the plate and do our duty as adults to teach these kids learn and grow as adults.

While the story provides an unflinching look at the crime of sex trafficking in Nepal and India - a practice that should be condemned and eradicated- the graphic nature if the narrative is inappropriate for children, pre-teens, and teens under the age of 18. The descriptions of the ongoing rape/violation and physical abuse suffered by the girls is emotionally disturbing and traumatic for many younger teens. Additionally, the description of one girl's suicide and the Nepalese mothers drinking the juice from the ink tree so that they will cause themselves to miscarry babies that they do not want to be born only to die later, yields difficult classroom discussions. This is particularly true when the teacher may not be aware of the personal beliefs or opinions of the student's family on such topics. I would strongly recommend that teachers who select this book for whole class guides reading activities first secure the consent of the parents to have their child participate. Encouraging parents to read the book with their child allow them the opportunity to facilitate discussions of the content in a way that they find developmentally appropriate.