Ma, he sold me for a few cigarettes by Martha Long, 479 pages

This is one of the most heartbreaking memoirs I've read. Martha grew up in Dublin in the 1950s. Her mother hooks up an abusive man who keeps Martha and her siblings in abject poverty and abusive terror. The horrible things Martha goes through trying to survive were heartwrenching. I devoured this book in one day and finished it feeling extremely drained emotionally. I wanted to give Martha a warm bath, a good meal and a hug.