BETWEEN SHADES OF GRAY by Ruta Sepetys

Sepetys, Ruta. Between Shades of Gray. 2011. New York:  Philomel Books. ISBN 9780399254123

Audio Book: 

Sepetys, Ruta. Between Shades of Gray. Read by Emily Klein. New York: Penguin Audio. ISBN 9780142428979

Ruta Sepetys breaks into young adult literature with a heavy weight contribution of historical significance in Between Shades of Gray.  Set during the Stalin purge of the Baltics 1941, we follow the horrific plight of 15 year old Lina and her family as they are taken from their home in Kaunas, Lithuania and moved to northern Siberia, across the Arctic Circle and ultimately left to survive at Trofimovsk, North Pole.  Thousands of others from Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia were submitted to this cruelty.

For Sepetys, this is a very personal story as she is of Lithuanian decent and has created her novel out of events told to her from her family’s history and subsequent research.  Some of the characters in the story are named after real people that were in her family and by people she met getting her facts.  Her extensive research even led her to arrange to be locked in a Soviet prison.  Consequently, the characters are practically three dimensional with life and breath.  Reading about “living” in freezing conditions in Siberia made me want to wrap up in a warm blanket.  The story feels so real, it reads like nonfiction.

Sepetys used a flashback style to fill in the blanks on what life was like before the loss of freedom.  We see a normal family unsuspecting of the magnitude of cruelty that was about to reign down on them.  Themes of love, survival, friendship, sacrifice, and forgiveness are all represented.  Included as reference are two maps representing the journey into exile by miles and by days and locations.  Both are visuals that add depth to the horror.  Her “Author’s Note” and “Acknowledgements” speak of the process and people who assisted her in her quest.

The audio book is recorded unabridged on seven discs for eight hours of listening.  The story is told in Lina’s voice, and I must confess I was disappointed that the professional voice talent for the audio version had no Russian or Lithuanian accent.  I think an authentic accent would have been a plus as it is in other audio books such as The Book Thief or Life of Pi.  Emily Klein’s voice talent is very clear and articulate, but seems forced at times, like a performance in a high school oratory competition.  Additionally, there are no pauses or sounds to alert when the story shifts to a flashback, so I found it very confusing to listen to without looking at the book. 

One thing I did appreciate about the audio version, however, was the author’s comments at the end about her experience writing her first novel, and her intimate connection to the material.  The story has been buried for decades, and she felt a strong calling to be the voice of the thousands who suffered.   At the very end she is overcome with emotion as she thanks the publishers who took a chance on her to let the story “come out of the dark.”  It is very touching.  You can find a video and extended version of her comments at her website at www.rutasepetys.com.  Horn Book quotes her in its review:  “A haunting chronicle, demonstrating that even in the heart of darkness, ‘love is the most powerful army.’”

I hope this story and the history behind it makes its way into more and more classrooms.  Hitler’s holocaust is widely studied, and this holocaust should be equally known as well.  If we can glean lessons of forgiveness, compassion, abhorrence of greed and cruelty, and the power of love over hate, then perhaps the lives lost will not have been in vain.

Between Shades of Gray deserves its many acknowledged, nominated and selected credentials,
among them being a Best Book of 2011 by School Library Journal, Booklist, Kirkus, iTunes, and the Amazon Top Ten of 2011.  I heartily agree with Booklist:  “An important book that deserves the widest possible readership.”