Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys--until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.
Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously--and at great risk--documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles.
This book was so good! Not only was it a good book it was also an easy read. This book was full of twists and turns, and thats hard to find in a realistic fiction book. The reader doesn' have to "get in to it" because it hooks you from the very first chapter. I'm so glad this book was on the readers' choice. I highly recommend this book.
ReplyDeleteI definately agree with you. At first I thought I wouldn't enjoy this book but I did from the very first page.
Deleteh1bryant I totally agree with you. I really enjoyed the different twist which made me not want to put it down. It really does "lure" you in with the first page.
DeleteI loved this book! I would recommend this to anyone and everyone. I absolutely fell in love with the main character, Lina. She is so courageous and self-dependent and I just loved reading about about a strong female character. I could not even fathom being in the position she was in during this book. But, the author really portrayed the problems Lina had to go through so well that it was like you were there, figuring them out with Lina yourself. It was definitely a page turner, (considering I read it in one night!) Great read!
ReplyDeleteI agree with W1Goodwin. I love reading about a strong female especially that has been through so much in her life. She was so determined through her whole experience during her journey to stay alive, and it was amazing as the reader to go through the journey with her. It was a great read, and I highly recommend the book!
DeleteThis book was amazing, but I do wish there was more romance with her and Andrius throughout the book. I would have loved it if their relationship was reunited at the end. It was a very exciting book, and I loved how they chapters were short. It made the book go by a lot faster. I would highly recommend this book to anyone.
DeleteI totally agree with you W1Goodwin, this book was so good! I do disagree with you about Lina though. She did grow stronger in the story, but as a main character she wasn't strong. I did love this book as much as do though.
DeleteI loved this book! It has to be one of my favorites, as in, it's in my top five. Although, some moments are tear jerkers and extremely detailed, it was amazing altogether. It had me hooked in the first chapter. I would totally recommend this book to others.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you! I may have shed a tear or two when certain evets took place, deffinatly a top three for me.
DeleteI absolutely LOVED this book! I couldn't put it down and it was easy to read. I loved how she used flashbacks throughout the story. I instantly connected to many characters in the book. This book had many suspense momments and it really caught my attention. I loved how the chapters were short so that you could read it quickly. This was one of the best books I have ever read and I definately recommend this to anyone who loves suspense and sad stories.
ReplyDeleteThis book is a "must read" book! I could never take my mind of the book for even just a second. Every chapter ended with a suspenseful sentence, to captivate you to keep reading. Ruta Sepetys used voice throughout the whole book and imagery to vividly describe the setting. This book brought many types of emotions to me, and it made me feel connected to Lina. This book has a great story and life lesson to it. Everyone should read this book!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I was totally skeptical when I saw it had so many chapters but once I read the first chapter I was hooked. The great thing about this book is there are many chapters but, there all short and interesting!
Delete@W3Wen, I definately agree with you. I love how the author lured you into reading the book and didn't make it boring to read. I thought she did a great job of making the book suspenseful and vivid. The author did great at making the story become real. As you said, it did bring many types of emotions, some heartbreaking and some joyful.
DeleteW3Wen I agree! The vivid vocabulary and suspense left me wanting more when I knew I had to stop. The chapters made it nearly impossible to not continue reading on! I did also notice her constant use of imagery, and I loved it! Her voice in the story along with the imagery helped me catch each moment perfectly in my mind. It all added to my mind-movie!
DeleteI fell in LOVE with this book! The author had me hooked by the first chapter. I found that I was very similar to Lina and loved her character. It was so realistic and had my mascara running many times. It was all so vivid and made me feel like I was actually there with her the whole time; like she was actually telling the story to me. Great book and I would definately recommend this book to almost anyone!
ReplyDeleteFrom start to finish, this book was amazing. Every chapter had something big or just interesting happened. Sepetys used imagery throughtout the whole book. she used clever, vivid writing that I could easlly picture in my head. I would recommend this book to anyone. Truely a great book!
ReplyDeleteThis book is so addictive, after the first chapter I was hooked. This book is so amazing I read it in like 3 days. Another good thing about this book it has so many chapters but there all interesting and very vivid.
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DeleteI agree with you! This book got me hooked in probably the first three chapters or less! One of the problems Lina faced throughout the story was her internal conflict within herself. She was forced to try to cooperate with the Germans or protect her and her family causing problems on both ends. Like you, I found the book to be very descriptive and vivid!
This novel was a very well written story that I feel may not be suitable to an audience younger than myself. The content was very mature as we see the characters go through the situation that they are in, the madness of the harsh treatment make my heart cry out, considering this actually happened to people.
ReplyDeleteI loved this book! It was amazing! It had me to where I couldn't put it down, and I had to keep reading. There were parts where it was really sad, but it all ended as a happy ending. It was really sad to know that this did happen to people and kids just like me and you. I would recommend this book to mature audiences.
ReplyDeleteThis book was so suspenseful and beautifully written. It was interesting to read a book about what Stalin did instead of Hitler during World War Two. When Lina had flashbacks about what her life was like before she was taken from her home, it provided a better look into her personality. Between Shades of Gray is very informative, however, there are some gruesome parts; so I wouldn't recommend it to everyone.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you h1page. This is a very mature book, and it isn't suitable for a younger audience than about eleven or twelve. It was also very hard to imagine that this actually happened to people.
ReplyDeleteBetween the Shades of Grey was an amazing book, it had me hooked right from the start. I fell in love, and connected with Lina from the very beginning. The whole adventure from the beginning to the end had me on the edge of my seat. This book had suspense, after suspense, after suspense.
ReplyDeleteI could not stop reading this book when I began. This was so touching and horrifying at the same time! Many people know of the holocaust, but not many know of the Russian's similar crisis. This story explains this crisis from a 14-year-old girls point of view, as she is taken away from her father to endure many months away from home with her mom and brother. They are thrown through many obstacles, and to watch as they hold on together is incredible. This story is so emotional, and I highly recommend it. I loved this book so much, I bought another book by this same author recently! It's now on my reading-to-do-list!
ReplyDeleteThis book really touched my heart! The bravery that Lina had throughout the book was truly inspiring! I can't put in words of how they must have felt when their family's were separated like that. There wasn't one moment in the book where I didn't want to read it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with W2Hawkins! This book was by far my favorite book I read! I wish i had the strength and the courage that Lina had. I recommend this book to everyone. You wouldn't regret taking the time to read it!
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