Lina, her younger brother, and her mother are taken from their home one night - while Lina is still in her nightgown - charged as criminals, and crammed into train cars where they deal with filth, starvation, and disease for weeks. Some who begin the trip with them do not survive. Lina's father was taken while he was at work, and the family is desperate for news of his whereabouts and try to find him, or at least find news about him, on neighboring train cars at great risk - they could be killed for sneaking off their own car. When they are finally deposited on a beet farm, they perform backbreaking labor for a few grams of bread each day. Some of the guards also take pleasure in tormenting them - making the prisoners think they are about to be murdered. They live like this for months. Lina, a budding artist, never gives up hope that her father will find his way to them. She does some things I wanted to yell, "Stop! Are you crazy?!" at her for doing, but she's young and desperate to reach out to her father. Throughout their entire ordeal she draws pictures and writes about the people who are sharing their experiences in order to document what is happening to them - and also to leave a sort of trail of breadcrumbs for her father to follow to find them. She passes on a handkerchief, letters, and pieces of wood onto which she has encrypted messages within her artwork, hoping they will eventually find their way to her father.

Eventually, the prisoners end up in Siberia where they labor by building, cutting wood, and fishing for the soldiers who are living in warm buildings with plenty of food while the prisoners live in mud huts that barely keep out any wind or cold and survive on scant bread rations. Cold, disease, and starvation claim the lives of many. Some prisoners also begin to lose their senses - others lose hope. Lina, however, shows great determination and spirit, even in the face of such tragedy.

The ending wraps things up very quickly and I would have liked the epilogue to have given more information about what happened to all the characters into which I had become so invested while reading. However, the whole novel was a very engrossing read - even as it was upsetting to read how inhumane man can be to man.

Although these particular characters are fictional, this is as upsetting a recounting of some of the things that happened to people during this time as was [b:Night|1617|Night |Elie Wiesel|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1311999832s/1617.jpg|265616], which I first read years ago. ( )

Ruta Sepetys never fails to deliver an amazing book. Another piece of history that I knew very little about. In 1940, the Soviet Union occupied the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. It's estimated that Stalin killed more than twenty million people during his reign of terror. ( )

This book is wonderful. Its hurt my heart but I can feel hopes from the book. ( )

his is a story about sacrifice, perseverance, survival, courage and hope.

During World War II, many Lithuanians lost their precious families and were forced to abandon their beloved homes. Their stories were told as they were seen, experienced and recorded by a fifteen year old Lithuanian girl, Lina. Lina's youth and homeland were stolen from her by Stalin's reign of terror.

Along with countless other Lithuanians, Lina and her family were abruptly removed from their beautiful and peaceful homes and sent on a harrowing and dehumanizing trip with the final destination being a Siberian prison camp. This book beautifully told the stories of some of the survivors and victims.

Lina, Jonas and Andrius cared for each other, protected one another and managed to scrape up little joys and small reasons to smile and hope. These actions and traits allowed them to persevere and survive.

The characters, both main and supportive, were multi dimensional and well developed.

Between Shades Of Gray is another story which needed to be told, experienced and remembered.
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Well balanced narrative of Stalin atrocities. ( )