Out of the Easy was such a pleasant surprise. I did not expect to enjoy it as much as I did. Even now, I am still thinking about this book and how amazing it is. Out of the Easy is about the life of Josie, the daughter of a brothel prostitute in New Orleans in the 1950s. However all Josie wants is to get out of New Orleans, go to college, and leave behind the life that she never wanted that includes an uncaring and rather heartless mother and the work prospects that seem to be pressuring her into submitting to. 
 Josie is a very strong willed and confident female protagonist. Not many girls can move away from their own home at the age of 11 and get their own apartment on top of a book shop and hold a steady job there up to now, at the age of 17. This takes a ton of presistance and determination. Josie also never dwelled on how horrible her life is, but thought of ways to get away from it and improve it. Also, having a mother like the one Josie has? my god, I would have disowned myself ages ago. Her mother is not only uncaring but is obsessing with a dangerous man that has hit her more than once, and actually steals.. from her own daughter. However Josie does have a mother figure in her life and, surprisingly, it is the madame of the brothel, Willie Woodley. From the outside she may seem to be tough as steel, but when it comes to Josie? you know she would do anything for her. The relationship between those two, even if unconventional, was so heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time. 
 Other secondary characters include Patrick, Jesse, and Cokie. The first is her close friend, the second is the love interest, and the third is sort of like her guardian; he is a driver who works for Willie and is always looking out for Josie. I have to say that romance isn't a prevailing theme in this novel, but I am a fan of romance in my novels and I still ended up loving Out of the Easy, so I would honestly recommend it to all young adult readers. I believe that Out of the Easy is a literary gem. It is one of those books with so many underlaying themes and "morales of the story" that I think everyone should at least try to pick this book up. I know for a fact that if you did, you would be swept up and to the world of Josie and the dreams that she, and you, want to come true.