The Sunday Section: Book Review - 'Between Shades of Gray'
"Have you ever wondered
what a human life is worth? That morning,
my brother’s was worth a pocket watch."
I read this book, Ruta Sepetys’ first novel, a couple of
years ago, after which, I’d made some notes for a possible review, which I never
got around to writing. I thought about
this book, and read it again, after reading an article in the ‘History’
magazine about the deportation of the Polish by the Soviet Union. That, in itself, was eye-opening – accustomed
to reading about Nazi destruction in occupied Poland, I'd almost forgotten, embarrassingly, that Stalin launched his invasion of Poland from the east, also in 1939,
days after Hitler had launched his; Stalin and Hitler being collaborators in
the early part of the war.
It is estimated that Josef Stalin killed more than 20 million
people during his reign of terror – how do you comprehend such a figure? With nothing to back it up, no stories, no
memoirs, it becomes little more than a statistic. ‘Between Shades of Gray’ is one of too-few
books that sheds light on a barely known chapter in history.
This from the author’s note – “In 1939, the Soviet Union
occupied the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Shortly
thereafter, the Kremlin drafted lists of people considered anti-Soviet who
would be murdered, sent to prison, or deported into slavery in Siberia.
Doctors, lawyers, teachers, military servicemen, writers, business owners,
musicians, artists, and even librarians were all considered anti-Soviet and
were added to the growing list slated for wholesale extermination. The first
deportations took place on June 14, 1941 … Caught between the Soviet and Nazi
empires and forgotten by the world, the Baltic states simply disappeared from
maps.”
Even though this is a Young Adult novel, the horrors these
people suffered haven’t been glossed over.
The story, related in first person, is told from the perspective of
15-year-old Lina, from the moment the NKVD (Soviet secret police) forcibly
enter her home and take her, her brother and mother away for deportation. The family later learn that Lina’s father has
been taken separately. Piled into cattle
trucks with others, including a woman who has just given birth and her newborn,
they are taken to Siberia.
The narrative is peppered with Lina’s memories from the
past, happier times made all the more poignant against the awfulness of Lina’s
present. Through her eyes, we see how
people reacted to their appalling circumstances – some gave up hope, others literally
lost their minds, while others were determined to survive, no matter what they
had to endure, or were subjected to by the Soviets. They were regarded as sub-human, and treated
as such.
Lina herself is a believable protagonist, far from perfect …
yes, she can be kind, but, like any teenager, is prone to acts of selfishness,
loses her temper and shouts, and doesn’t always do the right thing. And, refreshingly, for a YA novel, isn’t
obsessed about her looks or anyone else’s for that matter. Her talent as an artist helps her survive as
she focuses her fear and anger into her drawings, despite the fact that
discovery would mean severe punishment.
Much as I liked Lina, my favourite character was her mother,
Elena, a truly brave, selfless woman. From
the moment the NKVD entered her home, she behaved with dignity, yet still
showed her hidden strength. When her
children found her ‘smashing all of her best crystal and china on the floor’,
they cried to her to stop. Lina asked
her why she was breaking her beautiful things. Elena ‘stopped and stared at the china cup in
her hand. “Because I love them so much.”
That, for me, spoke volumes about the woman’s character. One of the other characters described Elena
as ‘beautiful, but with strength.’
It is a grim story; through her uncomplicated style, and
without needing to elaborate, Ms Sepetys lets the facts speak for themselves,
building a picture of the deportees’ harsh treatment, and what they had to do
to survive. And yet, despite the
bleakness, there are rays of hope that light up the narrative … unexpected acts
of kindness; brave souls refusing to turn their backs on others; those who
still insist on conducting themselves with dignity …
The title – ‘Between Shades of Gray’ – is most apt as we
read of the different moral choices that are made in the story. Faced with the exact same set of
circumstances, the individuals in the group react differently, their choices
coloured by their own, personal situation.
You begin to realise that there is no right or wrong, that it isn’t
possible to judge the choices these people made … reading, safely ensconced in
your home, you wonder how you would act in the exact same situation.
In my opinion, this novel isn’t only important because it
highlights Stalin’s deportations, but also because Ms Sepetys has based events
in her fictional story from stories of actual survivors. She “met with family members, survivors of
the deportations, survivors of the gulags, psychologists, historians, and
government officials. Many of the events
and situations I describe in the novel are experiences related to me by
survivors and their families, experiences they said were shared by many
deportees across Siberia.”
The survivors
remained in Siberia for another 10 to 15 years before being allowed to return,
only to find their homes occupied by the Soviets, while they themselves were
treated like criminals. Under constant surveillance,
they could not speak of what they’d endured, for that would mean imprisonment
or deportation back to Siberia. And so
their terrible experiences became a secret, an ugly secret shared by millions,
a secret that the world remained unaware of.
One that, hopefully, will emerge fully into the light, thanks to books like this
one.
“... evil will rule until good men or women choose to act.”