Between Shades of Gray

Last updated
Between Shades of Gray
Between-shades-of-gray.jpg
Author Ruta Sepetys
Language English
Genre Historical
Publisher Philomel Books
Publication date
2011
Publication place United States
Media typePrint (paperback)
Pages338
ISBN 978-0-14-133588-9
OCLC 701021642
LC Class PZ7.S47957 Be 2011

Between Shades of Gray, a New York Times Best Seller, is the debut novel of Lithuanian-American novelist Ruta Sepetys. It follows the Stalinist repressions of the mid-20th century and follows the life of a teenage girl Lina as she is deported from her native Lithuania with her mother and younger brother, and the journey they take to a Gulag labor camp in Siberia. It was nominated for the 2012 CILIP Carnegie Medal [1] and has been translated into more than 27 languages. [2]

Contents

Between Shades of Gray was originally intended as a young adult novel, but there have been several adult publications. In an interview with ThirstforFiction, Ruta Sepetys said that the reason she intended Between Shades of Gray to be a young adult novel was because she met many survivors in Lithuania who were themselves, teenagers, during the deportations and had a greater will to live than many of their adult counterparts at the time. [3]

Inspiration and basis

Between Shades of Gray is partly based upon the stories Sepetys heard from survivors of Soviet repressions in the Baltic states during a visit to her relatives in Lithuania. [4] Sepetys decided she needed to write a fiction novel rather than a non-fiction volume as a way of making it easier for survivors to talk to her. She interviewed dozens of people during her stay. [5]

Synopsis

Lina Vilkas is introduced as a young artist living comfortably in her home in Kaunas, Lithuania, with her loving family. But, on June 14, 1941, Soviet officers (the NKVD) barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father and forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, along with her mother and her younger brother Jonas, slowly makes her way north 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 befriends many people and works hard alongside her mother and brother for food and survival.

Upon arriving at the camp, Lina and her family are forced to live with Ulyushka, a cruel, seemingly heartless woman who initially dislikes the Vilkas family and constantly takes their food and other goods from them as a form of rent. Elena Vilkas, Lina's mother, is kind and generous to Ulyushka, though Lina and her brother Jonas cannot understand why.

The family befriends fellow Lithuanian deportees including Andrius Arvydas (who later becomes Lina's love interest), Mr. Stalas (referred to as the Bald Man, who is secretly Jewish and adds a touch of humour because of his terrible advice and short temper), Mrs. Grybienė, Mrs. Rimas, and Aleksandras Lukas (a gray-haired man who was once a lawyer, often seen winding his watch, who is the voice and soul of reason).

One NKVD member, in particular, sticks out to Lina: Nikolai Kretzsky. Although he doesn't at first come off as necessarily kind or helpful, Kretzsky more or less befriends Lina and her mother. He can be seen as only being downright cruel to Lina when around other NKVD members.

Andrius Arvydas is handsome, golden-brown haired, and a source of comfort for Lina. At first, she dislikes him, dismissing him as an "idiot" because he smoked her book, which was a present from her dead grandmother. Their friendship blossoms but becomes troubled when Lina accuses Andrius and his mother of working for the NKVD. It turns out his mother was being unwillingly used as a prostitute because of her beauty, but only to protect her son. Andrius becomes Lina's more-or-less boyfriend and gives Lina a new book. Lina and her family are then separated from Andrius when they are transported to a different camp across the Arctic Circle. There, they are forced to build their own shelter to survive.

But then Lina's mother dies. Jonas comes down with an illness and does not take to any treatment. Just when Lina doubts that she will survive, a Soviet doctor comes to the camp to inspect it. He diagnoses Jonas with scurvy and begins to treat him. The book's ending is somewhat open-ended, although it is revealed in the epilogue that Lina and Jonas survive and are held there for ten more years. Lina and Andrius eventually marry according to the epilogue, with her burying the memoir of her captivity in Kaunas.

Characters

Reception

Between Shades of Gray received intensely positive reviews. Linda Sue Park of The New York Times described it as a "superlative first novel" [6] whilst Susan Carpenter of the LA Times called it a "story of hardship as well as human triumph". [7] Publishers Weekly praised Between Shades of Gray, calling it a "harrowing page-turner, made all the more so for its basis in historical fact". [8]

The book was a finalist for 2012 William C. Morris Award for a debut young adult novel and for the 2012 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award. It was shortlisted for 2012 Carnegie Medal and won the 2012 Golden K-Word Award (a variation of the Golden Kite Award.) It received an Outstanding Merit recognition as a 2012 Best Children's Book of the Year from the Children's Committee of Bank Street College of Education. Sigma University recognized as 2023’s Sigma Book of the Year; the graphic novel version was on the 2022 list. [9]

Film adaptation

Recognition

National awards

International awards

State awards

Translations

Further reading

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References

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  2. 1 2 "- Ruta e. Sepetys Author -". rutasepetys.com. Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
  3. "An Interview With Ruta Sepetys". Thirst for Fiction. November 2, 2011. Archived from the original on December 7, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  4. Macpherson, Karen (June 4, 2011). "'Between Shades of Gray' reveals horror and hope". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on August 25, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  5. Alter, Alexandra (March 25, 2011). "An Unlikely Story for Teens". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on January 20, 2015. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
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  7. Carpenter, Susan (March 27, 2011). "Not Just for Kids: 'Between Shades of Gray' by Ruta Sepetys". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on October 25, 2011. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  8. "'Between Shades of Gray' review". Publishers Weekly. January 3, 2011. Archived from the original on April 20, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  9. "Best Children's Books of the Year Archive - Bank Street College of Education". Bank Street College of Education. Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2023-04-05.
  10. 1 2 3 Sepetys, Ruta (2012-04-03). Between Shades of Gray. Philomel Books. ISBN   978-0-14-242059-1. Archived from the original on 2024-06-15. Retrieved 2024-05-11.
  11. 1 2 Sepetys, Ruta. "Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys: 9780593204160 | Brightly Shop". www.readbrightly.com. Archived from the original on 2024-05-11. Retrieved 2024-05-11.