Sunday, February 21, 2010

Review: Not for Sale

Contrary to popular belief, slavery was not eradicated in 1865. It still exists today. It still exists in the United States.

In Not for Sale, David Batstone tells the stories of slavery today — sex slaves, forced laborers, and child soldiers — and what is being done to combat it.

In it you'll meet Srey Neang, a Cambodian girl who truly lived the saying that the light at the end of the tunnel is the headlamp of an oncoming train. For years, every time it seemed like her life might get a little better it got much worse. You'll walk with Charles, a Ugandan boy, as he is kidnapped and turned into a murderer in the name of Jesus.

Not for Sale will also introduce you to people like Lucy Borja, who rescues children from the streets of Peru, and Louis Etongwe, who rescues slaves in modern-day Virginia, and some of the organizations that are working to rescue people from their chains, both here and abroad.

Is this a good book? The question just doesn't fit. The book is well-written. It's a page-turner. It's horrible. You want to stop, but you can't.

And you shouldn't. Because in a time when freedom is supposed to be on the march, there are millions of people — many of them children — who are being treated like cattle. Right now.

And the Church needs to be on the forefront of the battle just as we were before.

Rating: Must Read

No comments: