“Sold” is a young adult novel by Patricia McCormick and details 13-year-old Lakshmi’s experiences after being sold into sexual slavery by her stepfather. Lakshmi lives with her mother and stepfather in a rural mountain village in Nepal. Her mother is a devoted homemaker and her stepfather is a wasteful spender, preferring to use money to buy himself clothes, beer, and cigarettes instead of food for his family. When Lakshmi’s stepfather’s debts become too immense, he sells her as a sex slave, during which time Lakshmi is taken to an unnamed city in India, and sold to Mumtaz, the proprietor of Happiness House.

There, Lakshmi is beaten and drugged into submission after she initially refuses to have sex with any of the customers, at which time she is forced to have sex with men in order to pay off the cost for which she has been purchased. Lakshmi befriends some of the other prostitutes, like Shahanna, and does her best to figure out how much longer she has before she earns her freedom. She does her best to continue looking forward to going home, but as each day passes, she feels as if her situation is becoming more and more hopeless. Nevertheless, she focuses on her friendship with some of the other prostitutes, and befriends one of their children.

As time goes on, Lakshmi becomes more desperate to get away from Happiness House, and to get home. She takes on more and more clients and does extreme things in order to make more money, but things begin to change for her when she meets a blonde-haired American man who does not have sex with her, but talks to her, instead. He surprises her by asking her what her name is, and if she is at Happiness House against her will. Lakshmi is too startled and scared to answer. The American leaves a card behind with Lakshmi.

Lakshmi regrets having not spoken to the American, and having not told him the truth about her situation. As her situation grows even worse –she is expected to take on even more men after another prostitute escapes –she decides she has had enough and needs out, now. She later sends out the American’s card with her friend, a tea-seller, to deliver back to the safe place where the American works. A second American man later comes to visit Lakshmi based on the return of the card. While he is there, he comforts her a little by asking her who she is, if she is there against her will, and if she wants to come to the safe place. She finally finds her voice, gives her name, and says she does indeed want to come to the safe place The American returns several agonizing days later with an American woman, and a group of good Indian men to free Lakshmi. She is then taken away from Happiness House, now 14 years old.