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Book Review of Between Shades of Gray

Between Shades of Gray
reviewed on + 23 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2


I won Between Shades of Gray on the Goodreads First reads contest.
Shades of Gray is a wonderful and moving first novel by Ruta Sepetys. Set in 1941, prior to the beginning of World War II, Between Shades of Gray is about the life of a young girl and her family.

We meet Lina, her mother and her brother as they are being taken from their home in Lithuania. Lina is unsure as to what is going on, one day she is planning to attend a prestigious art school and the next she is on a train. We follow Lina and her family as they journey into Siberia to a camp where they are forced to survive at all costs. They meet friends and foes on their journey of survival. Throughout it all, Lina struggles to document their story through her artwork.

I really enjoyed Lina's story, as well as how the author portrayed her. Lina became special to me and I found myself unwilling to put the book down. I knew very little about this time period and am now planning to read more about it. As children we learn so much about the evilness of Hitler but so little about Stalin (who is a truly horrible person). I recommend this book to everyone, as this is a piece of history that is all but forgotten.