A childhood lost : a report on child marriage in the UK and the developing world / from the UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive Health.

"Child marriage, which is marriage that takes place before one or both of the spouses has reached adulthood, is a global phenomenon. This is despite the fact that it is illegal according to international – and, in most cases, national – laws. Although it is most prevalent in the developing world, there is increasing evidence of child marriage happening in the UK and other developed countries. Girls are tricked into being taken from this country by their families to marry men they have never seen. This report tells some of their stories. In other countries child and forced marriage is widespread and sometimes horrifying in its cruelty. Our report records the suffering of these girls and the expertise of many specialists in the field on the familial and societal causes of this practice."--From the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Population, Development and Reproductive Health's website.