Between Shades of Gray

Inspiration and basis

Between Shades of Gray is partly based upon the stories she heard from survivors of the Genocide of Baltic people during a visit to her relatives in Lithuania.

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.

Lina Vilkas is introduced as a young artist living comfortably in her home in Kaunas, Lithuania, living 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, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her younger brother, Jonas, slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, 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. She 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' 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 she and her brother Jonas cannot understand why. She befriends Andrius who later becomes her love interest, Alexandras Lukas (known as "The Man Who Wound His Watch") Mr. Stalas (the Bald Man), Mrs. Grybas, Mrs. Rimas. There is also one NKVD member who also sticks out to Lina as well; Nikolai Kretzsky. Though he doesn't at first come off as necessarily kind or helpful, he more or less befriends Lina and her mother. He can be seen as only being downright cruel to Lina only when around other NKVD members. He doesn't seem to want to hurt Lina unless he absolutely has to. He is described as young, blonde-haired, and blue-eyed, and can be assumed to be quite handsome. Their relationship grows and remains important throughout the book. Alexandras Lukas is gray-haired and was a lawyer. He is often seen winding his watch, and is the voice and soul of reason. The Bald Man is secretly Jewish and can add a touch of humor because of his terrible advice and short temper. Andrius Arvydas is handsome, golden-brown haired, and a source of comfort for Lina. At first, she disliked him, dismissing him as an "idiot" because he smoked her book, which was a present from her deceased grandmother. Their friendship blossoms, though becomes troubled when Lina accuses him and his mother for 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 and her friends. Andrius becomes Lina's more-or-less boyfriend, and gets Lina a new book. Lina is then transported, separated from Andrius to a different camp where they are forced to build their own houses to survive. But then Lina's mother dies. Just when she doubted survival a man shows up giving everyone blankets and food. He took them home after another long trip and Lina finds Andrius and they get married.

Characters

Reception

Between Shades of Gray has received intensely positive reviews. The New York Times describes it as a "superlative first novel" whilst the LA Times called it a "story of hardship as well as human triumph". Publishers' Weekly praised Between Shades of Gray, calling it a "harrowing page-turner, made all the more so for its basis in historical fact".

The book was a finalist for the 2012 William C. Morris Award for a debut young adult novel and was shortlisted for the 2012 Carnegie Medal. The book won the 2012 Golden Kite Award. The book was a finalist for the 2012 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award.

National awards

International awards

State awards

Translations