Between Shades of Gray

Bibliography

Sepetys, Ruta. Between Shades of Gray. New York, NY: Philomel Books, 2011. Print.

Nilsen, Allen Pace, James Blasingame, Kenneth L. Donelson, and Don L. Nilsen. Literature for   

       Today's Young Adults. 9th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print.

Summary

In 1941, Lina, fifteen, and her family are forcefully taken from Lithuania as part of Stalin’s “intellectual cleansing” program. She, her mother, and brother are shipped via cattle cars and trucks for weeks before they are imprisoned in multiple Soviet labor camps in inhospitable places such as Siberia and the North Pole. Lina uses hope, her family, and her drawings, to attempt to survive the 6500 mile journey and life in labor camps.

 

Analysis

“Was it harder to die, or harder to be the one who survived?” (Sepetys 319). 

Between Shades of Gray allows the reader to immerse themselves as a prisoner of war in Stalin-era labor camps. The book is “steeped in time and place” and weaves in national pride, religion, and customs, including some of the political issues that led to Lina’s family being persecuted and labeled as criminals (Nilsen, et al. 258). There is a constant sense of danger, confusion, mystery, and even adventure. The characters in this book constantly move between total despair and hope, deep love and mindless hatred, and compassion and cruelty from the guards.  

Unlike many YA novels, the teen protagonist in Between Shades of Gray is not going through her challenges alone. Lina is with her family for the majority of the novel. The reader is witness to their suffering as well as the effect on Lina. Lina is mature and immature at different points. As things get worse, she progressively loses any remaining childhood and becomes a responsible adult trying to survive and protect her family. She has to make a choice to give up or fight for her life. She deals with her new reality by accepting the challenge of having to keep her brother alive by all means. 

Sepetys creates a believable 15-year-old character. She keeps sane by expressing herself and reflecting on her situation through her drawings. It is very easy to relate to Lina’s thoughts throughout her ordeal. Sepetys has a clever writing style, interlacing flashbacks of Lina’s previous privileged life with her current, stark situation. 

To Sepetys credit, several of the guards are also presented as three-dimensional characters. They are experiencing confusion and inner turmoil at having to enforce the brutal, and often inhumane, treatment on the prisoners that is demanded of them. Some of them are prisoners in their own right, just better fed.

Between Shades of Gray would be a good novel for introducing a discussion about Stalin, Communism, and the “intellectual cleansing” that claimed nearly 1/3 of the populations of Estonia, Bulgaria, and Lithuania. Lina’s family was sent to the labor camps and branded a thief and traitor because her father was the Provost at the University and an educated man. Students today could discuss what effect a political move like this would effect them and their family. Additionally, students could discuss current countries that do not allow freedom of speech such as enforcing a tight information barrier to the Internet and media, like in North Korea.

There is much action in the book as Lina and her family try to survive each day. At times, the action seems too thick as there is constant movement from some event to the next. There author needed to better balance mundane existence in a prison camp with more dramatic moments. 

Overall, I would recommend this book to a male or female YA reader because of the historical significance of this novel. Few books capture the history of a prisoner during Stalin’s genocide of the Baltic people. Sepetys’ writing makes this very accessible to a teen audience. 

Take Me to the River

Bibliography

Hobbs, Will. Take Me to the River. New York, NY: Harper, 2011. Print.

Nilsen, Allen Pace, James Blasingame, Kenneth L. Donelson, and Don L. Nilsen. Literature for Today's Young Adults. 9th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. Print.

Summary

Two cousins, Rio, 15, and Dylan, 14, attempt to whitewater raft the 116 miles of the Lower Canyons of the Rio Grande River for ten days on their own. In addition to trying to survive in this harsh climate, they encounter a tropical storm possibly heading their way and a murdering kidnapper on the loose somewhere in their vicinity with both the Mexican and American authorities on the hunt. Will they complete their journey alive?

Analysis           

Take Me to the River is a good adventure novel in that the “pace moved faster and faster to speed us into the tale” (Nilsen, et al. 227). There is much anticipation throughout the book as the boys battle for survival in the harsh, remote land and with two perceived threats looming – an incoming tropical storm and a fugitive on the loose. The reader can live vicariously through the boys as they travel down the Rio Grande like modern day Huck Finns.

Hobbs does a good job of quickly setting up major decisions that create tension for the main characters. Dylan constantly doubts himself as he is frequently confronted with having to take greater risks and go further outside his comfort zone as the trip progresses. For example, Dylan thinks to himself “You play it safe, you’ll disappoint your cousin and yourself. You’ll have to live with that.” He then says “I’m in. I’m going all the way, till the wheels fall off and burn” (Hobbs 77). This inner turmoil keeps his character believable and likeable. It also provides a reflection point for the reader to ask “what would I do in this situation?” Over time Dylan gains more confidence in his capabilities.

Hobbs provides an accurate picture of the day-to-day life on the border of Mexico and United States and how it has changed after the events of 9-11. He goes into detail about the trade relations and the political situation for people in this remote area including jobs and work situations, smuggling and trading of goods, illegal aliens, and the border patrol. Additionally, he gives a fairly detailed history lesson on the city of Boquillas, Mexico to personify the struggles of many remote border towns. 

Although the focus of an adventure book shouldn’t be the setting (Nilsen, et al. 228), the descriptive writing for this novel could have been stronger. Namely, many vocabulary terms and geological descriptions weren’t fully explained. An illustration would have been helpful to set the scene or provide more thorough descriptions than the cursory writing. The reader is left with a sense of the remoteness and poverty in the area, but often wouldn’t know what a Cat’s Claw Tree looks like or an octocillo. Hobbs also uses rafting terms that the average youth may not know. This takes the reader out of the rhythm of the book.  A short glossary in the back to describe some of the flora and fauna or what a “Canadian Stroke” is would be helpful. I found myself going to the Internet to help visualize what he was trying to describe.

Another weak piece of writing is in the characterization of the “bad guy.” He is very flat and not realistic. For example, he calls himself a gangster and is constantly waving his gun around. This character is too stereotypical to believe he is a serious cartel member.

           

Overall, I would recommend this book to a male YA reader because of the connection to nature, stirring adventure plot, and exposure to life on the Mexican-American border.