Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Sepetys, R. (2012). Between shades of Gray. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-014242059
🚨Content warning: racism, slavery, death, forced sex work, smoking, starvation, loss of loved ones🚨
Lina is an ordinary 15-year-old Lithuanian girl until the Soviet Army enters her home in the dead of night and forces her and her family into Siberian work camps. As the Soviets tear apart Lina's family, she wants nothing but to be free and reunited with her father. Determined to see her family reunited, Lina leaves a paper trail of her drawings, hoping they will reach her father in his prison camp. Will hope and love be enough to survive the brutal tragedies Lina and her family will face?
Between Shades of Gray was a horrific tale because Ruta Sepetys tells a chilling and realistic tale of what happened to Lithuanians during World War II. The book's contents are not an easy topic to read about, but you should not shy away from it. Despite all the hardships Lina, her mother, and her brother face, they do not lose hope that they will eventually go home. Between Shades of Gray is an essential read that everyone should invest time in because it illustrates the horrors of World War II from a different perspective. In History class, you may not always have the chance to learn about the Soviet work camps, and this novel gives you an insight into the tragedies that were happening.
Between Shades of Gray takes place over 15 months, and at no point do you ever feel rushed reading it. Ruta Sepetys does a fantastic job at pacing this novel. The horrors you read about, from the death of an infant, shootings, starvation, slavery, etc., are spread out throughout the book, so it's not just one bad thing after another. Instead, we get to see some bright moments in the book, showing that even with the horrific conditions, humans can persevere through the worst. One of my favorite moments that illustrates this is during Christmas, when everyone in the work camp gathers together, gets dressed up, and shares memories and stolen chocolate with each other.
Readers will need to go into this prepared. It is not a book where the perfect happy ending happens. While Lina and her brother ultimately get freed from the prison camp, it is not with her mother and father. Lina's mother's death was hard to read. I do not cry easily when it comes to books and movies, but I did tear up with Lina's mother's death. Lina's mother was a strong woman, who never lost hope that one day they would be free, and to find out she died in the camps was difficult. Reading as Lina and her brother mourned was also difficult, but not as difficult as the real tragedies Lithuanians faced in these camps. Between Shades of Gray is an incredible novel that everyone should read at least once. Ruta Sepetys did a phenomenal job at researching this novel.
Kirkus Reviews says, "Sepetys' flowing prose gently carries readers through the crushing tragedy of this tale that needs telling." Wini Ashooh from Central Rappahannock Region Library points out, "There are people alive today who remember that time, and their experiences need to be told [and] Ruta Sepetys has accomplished that in a very compelling and moving story." TikTok user @readingwithnatasha says in her book review that it is "very sad, very horrific, very heartbreaking, but also very beautiful. This book highlights the resilience of love and family and shows the strength of bonds and how people can survive things like this in their life." If you enjoyed this book, I highly recommend Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys. In addition, the book has a movie adaptation called Ashes in the Snow that you should watch after reading. I also found a timeline of Lina's journey on TimeToast by afhousley that you can view here!
Awards and Recognition:
- A New York Times notable book
- An international bestseller
- A Carnegie Medal nominee
- A William C. Morris Award finalist
- A Golden Kite Award winner
afhousley. (n.d.). Between shades of gray timeline. TimeToast timelines. https://www.timetoast.com/timelines/between-shades-of-gray-260cbc3f-f134-43d2-b51b-a8d534f9fd14
Ashooh, W. (2018, August 6). Between shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys. Central Rappahannock Regional Library. https://www.librarypoint.org/blogs/post/between-shades-of-gray-by-ruta-sepetys/
Between shades of Gray. Penguin Classroom Portal. (2022, August 2). https://www.penguinclassroom.com/books/between-shades-of-gray/
Natasha. (2022, July 27). Natasha reads on TikTok. TikTok. https://www.tiktok.com/@readingwithnatasha/video/7125054770963877126?_r=1&_t=8dsczKcOnKl
Sepetys, R. (2011, March 22). Between shades of Gray. Kirkus Reviews. https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/ruta-sepetys/between-shades-gray/
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