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School Library Journal
Starred Review on March 1, 2011
Gr 8 Up—This novel is based on extensive research and inspired by the author's family background. Told by 15-year-old Lina, a Lithuanian teen with penetrating insight and vast artistic ability, it is a gruesome tale of the deportation of Lithuanians to Siberia starting in 1939. During her 12 years there, Lina, a strong, determined character, chronicles her experiences through writings and drawings. She willingly takes chances to communicate with her imprisoned father and to improve her family's existence in inhuman conditions. ...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
Horn Book Magazine
Reviewed on May 1, 2011
In 1939, the Soviet Union annexed the Baltic nations, which then disappeared from maps, not to reappear until 1990. Teachers, librarians, musicians, artists, writers, business owners, doctors, lawyers, and servicemen were considered anti-Soviet and sent into exile. Esther Hautzig told this story in her seminal 1968 memoir The Endless Steppe; Sepetys's even starker novel is more extreme in its depiction of deprivation and suffering. When in June 1941 the Soviet secret police show up at fifteen-y...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
Horn Book Guide
Reviewed on January 1, 2011
In 1941 Lithuania, the Soviet secret police show up at fifteen-year-old Lina Vilkas's home. They throw Lina, her younger broth...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
Junior Library Guild
Reviewed on April 1, 2011
A tender and moving story filled with details that make the places and events described come to life. Ruta Sepetys drew inspiration for the book, her fi...Log In or Sign Up to Read More
