Breaking Stalin's Nose

Breaking Stalin's Nose
By Eugene Yelchin
Henry Holt and Company, 2011. 154 pgs. Middle Grade fiction

Growing up in Stalin's Russia, Sasha Zaichik can't wait to join the Young Pioneers, the Communist group for youth. He's known all the laws and rules of being a good Communist since he was a child, he loves Stalin, and he wants to grow up to be a hero like his father, a good, good Communist. However, on the eve of the ceremony when he'll finally join the Pioneers, Sasha's father is arrested. Certain there must be a mistake and that when Stalin finds out, he'll free his father, Sasha stills plans to join the Pioneers. However, this incident sets in motion a series of events that shows Sasha that perhaps Stalin and Communism are the idols and ideals he wants to uphold anymore.

This is a quick read (I read it in 30 minutes), but it's a great overview into Stalinist Russia, and how the people lived in fear and oppression, and that no one was safe. With black and white illustrations throughout, this is historical fiction that could appeal to even reluctant readers and the themes make it an excellent choice for classroom discussions.

4 stars. Clean read.

Between Shades of Gray

Between Shades of Gray
By Ruta Sepetys
Philomel Books, 2011. 344 pgs. Teen fiction

In 1941, Lina and her family are living in Lithuania, which has been invaded by Stalin's Soviets. After her father disappears, Lina, her brother and mother are rounded up, forced onto a train, and taken to a labor camp where they live in horrible conditions, with little food, terrible captors, and the constant worry about where their father is and if they will ever be reunited. Lina, an artist, draws pictures of their experiences so that someday, she'll be able to share them with the world, and also tries to find some way to contact her father.

Wow! This book is a powerful look at a time period that I knew nothing about. I vaguely knew that the Soviet Union had labor camps and people were lost in the system for years, but this book took that little knowledge and made it real. Although it's fiction, the situations and circumstances portrayed provide an eye-opening look at a very real, terrible time in history. With such an intense topic wrapped into gripping writing, there's not much more I could ask from the book. I do ask publishers and authors to provide more books, both fiction and nonfiction, on this topic for teen readers.

5 stars. Clean read. (There might be a little language, and a little bit of realistic vulgarity in how the Soviets talk about and to the captured women.)