It is a terrible shock for this little six year old girl who thought she was going on holiday to find herself faced by such terrible conditions. Many shocking and heart-breaking revelations and stories are told in this book, and you will find yourself mad, sad, and will most likely cry as you read along. Marie was one of ten children, living in poverty in Oldham, and her parents could not cope, so were sadly forced to give her and her brother up.

You couldn't even imagine and when you put it in to perspective you wonder what was wrong with the adults? A heartbreaking story of a convent run by sadistic nuns and how a 6yr old girl fights for survival for the next 3 years. Marie, now 65, says: "I cannot in all truth say that this ordeal has not, at times, dominated and defined me.

I was shoved in a bath and they mocked me, stroked me like a cat and told me how cute I was,’ she recollects, squirming. This is the heartbreaking story of Marie Hargreaves and the tough times she faced during her childhood.

It feels odd to say whether I enjoyed this book or not, given that it's about something so shocking. She was one of 10 children (I think 7 at the time she was sent away) of extremely poor parents who could only afford a single bed for them all to sleep in, yet rhey had a baby every year. He's actually taking them to a convent where her hair is bluntly chopped off, her clothes are taken away from her and her name is changed.Marie was told by her father she was going away on holiday when a car arrived to take her away from their home in Oldham. A young and innocent six year old taken away from her family due to poverty that today is difficult to believe, all bought about by the draconian laws of the Catholic Church. These children are either orphaned or from very poor homes, that I thought it might be interesting after reading Stolen: A Memoir of a girl from a very wealthy family in the US placed in a therapeutic school that she, and many others, accuse of very similar sorts of abuse. The statement went on: "In relation to this case, the Archdiocese safeguarding team was informed of the allegation made and the safeguarding co-ordinator in post at the time spoke at length with the individual and explored support which could be helpful to her.

I literally could not put this book down once I began reading, and was on the edge of my seat the entire way through as I flipped through the pages to see what happened next. Unthinkable how even the hardest circumstances could lead to a family deciding this was the best for their children.I adored my children… I wanted to make sure they felt loved and safe; something I had never had as a child,’ Marie says. Her parents didn't protect her and they didn't do what was necessary so that their children were placed in the convent. Set in Oldham towards the end of the 1950's little 6-year-old Marie and her brother are told they are going on a holiday. It literally broke my heart 😔Im so sorry them "nuns" I use the word lightly did these horrid things to you Marie! I kept thinking I need to know where her grave is so I can put some flowers on her grave," she said.