Showing that small, even micro publishers can still make a big impact, the School Library Association has named Sold by Sue Barrow (Cadence Publishing), as their ‘editor’s pick’ for their summer reading recommendation for ages 13-16, choosing the YA thriller over hundreds of other possible titles from major publishing houses. The SLA notes that the novel ‘raises vital awareness of human trafficking’, Susan Elkin writing, ‘This is the most compelling young adult title I’ve read in a long time [...] Share this page-turner with every young person you know.’
What is all the more remarkable is that Sold is the first book from independent press, Cadence Publishing, and it has already been lauded by Jane Johnson, bestselling author of The Sea Gate and the just released The Black Crescent (see p10) as, ‘A gripping adventure story about a very important real-world problem, told with conviction and plenty of hard-hitting detail,’ and by Miriam Halahmy, (Always Here for You and the forthcoming A Boy from Baghdad), as ‘Essential, compelling, deeply moving.’