Julia Laite Livres

1910, Wellington, New Zealand. Lydia Harvey is sixteen, working long hours for low pay, when a glamorous couple invite her to Buenos Aires. She accepts - and disappears. London, England. Amid a global panic about sex trafficking, detectives are tracking a ring of international criminals when they find a young woman on the streets of Soho who might be the key to cracking the whole case. As more people are drawn into Lydia's life and the trial at the Old Bailey, the world is being reshaped into a new, global era. Choices are being made - about who gets to cross borders, whose stories matter and what justice looks like - that will shape the next century. In this immersive account, historian Julia Laite traces Lydia Harvey through the fragments she left behind to build an extraordinary story of aspiration, exploitation and survival - and one woman trying to build a life among the forces of history.

Focusing on the Wolfenden Committee's overlooked examination of prostitution, this sourcebook compiles interviews and critical analyses that reveal the complexities of opinions on the subject. While the Committee is often remembered for its stance on homosexuality, this work emphasizes that prostitution was its original focus. By restoring prostitution to the forefront of discussions about Britain’s progressive era, it challenges prevailing narratives and highlights significant evidence from outside London. This collection aims to foster important debates on the history of sexuality and societal norms in twentieth-century Britain.