Ma, He Sold Me for a Few Cigarettes - Martha Long

As a fan of autobiographies and true stories, this book caught my eye at the school I volunteer in. The book people bring in products for us to look at and purchase every few weeks and this one was an absolute bargain at just £4! RRP is £9.99 The title grabbed my attention immediately and when I read the back and discovered it was an autobiography, I placed my order. When the book arrived the following week, I started reading it straight away. Once I opened it, I couldn't put it down. Following the heart rendering story of Martha had me in tears from laughing one minute and sadness the next. The book is written from the point of view of Martha, ...  Read the complete review

I first spotted this book at the airport when I was going on holiday. I was browsing the book store with an open mind, when I passed the autobiography section, and was immediately drawn to the title of the book, 'Ma, He Sold Me for a Few Cigarettes.' With a title like that, you can't fail to be curious about what story lies within the pages of the book. This book has been a number one best seller in the UK, and is the debut book by author Martha Long (2007). The book is 477 pages long and it retails at £6.99 at all good bookstores - but I recommend you get a cheaper copy at Amazon.com **Plot** The book is a true life account ...  Read the complete review

This is a memoir of a young girl called Martha Long, living in Dublin in the 1950s. She is born a bastard into poverty of the slums. Her mother has several men to which she has children. This puts her in more peverty and little catholic girl Martha is forced to steel to survive. Her mother meets another man called Jackster. Jackster is a drunk and has a violent temper. He takes a disliking to Martha becasue she is not his own. He makes her go out and steel. Pushes her around and leaves her having the least of what they, or rather she, can get for them. He uses her to fend for the family but treats her the worst. He does sell her to his friend for a packet of ...  Read the complete review

If ever there was a book I couldn,t put down, this was one of them. Martha Longs portrayal of her tragic childhood, in the autobiography "Ma he sold me for a few cigarettes" has stayed with me. It opens with Martha a four year old child living a somewhat happy life with her mother, a single parent who has little in the way of parenting skills, but as they live with other family members they get by in a fashion. Mother gives birth to another illegitimate child "Charlie" and ina series of twists and turns, Martha often takes the lead and takes care of the family in her own childlike fashion, the story is written in her native tongue, and once ...  Read the complete review