Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
Genre: Historical, Young Adult
Pages: 391
Published by: Puffin on 4th February, 2016
Format: Paperback
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Book Synopsis:
It’s early 1945 and a group of people trek across Germany, bound together by their desperation to reach the ship that can take them away from the war-ravaged land. Four young people, each haunted by their own dark secret, narrate their unforgettable stories.
This inspirational novel is based on a true story from the Second World War. When the German ship theΒ Wilhelm GustloffΒ was sunk in port in early 1945 it had over 9000 civilian refugees, including children, on board. Nearly all were drowned.
Book Review
I’d not heard of this book or this author before but and English teacher that I work with recommended me to give this a read as she knows I find books set during World War 2 very interesting. She did forewarn me that I was about to embark on an emotional journey. I didn’t ask her anything about the book and went into it blind and wow… what a read this was! This review will be short-ish as I think this book speaks for itselfβ¦
I will start off by saying that I read this whole book in one day. It’s nearly 400 pages and yet I absolutely devoured this. Each chapter follows a different main character but they are so incredibly short to read. The multiple POVs were not off-putting and you are able to remember who is who from quite early on. The fact that it is a Young Adult novel also helped the pacing because the author used accessible, easy-to-follow writing instead of dense or heavy prose. I didn’t want to put this book down at all.
Sepetys did a great job of making the reader connect with the characters. I became fully invested in their stories and watched as they gradually intertwined with one another. Joana is a Lithuanian nurse; Emilia, a young Polish girl; Florian, Emilia’s mysterious rescuer; and Alfred, a young German soldier. The only character that I didn’t connect with as much as the others was Arthur. However, I became completely invested in Joana, Florian, and Emilia and their individual stories. There are supporting characters such as the Shoemaker, the Wandering Boy and the Blind girl who you will come to care for so deeply. I felt that they enriched the story, and their individual journeys captivated me once again.
This book is devastating, heart-breaking, powerful, courageous and compelling! There were a lot of moments throughout this book where I was tearing up. Then finally… the last chapter completely floored me. I can honestly say that this story will stay with me forever, and I’m so glad that Sepetys brought attention to a tragedy that has somehow been forgotten. Personally, I had never heard of this sinking before reading this book but I am glad to have finally learned about it.
I definitely think this is an important read because it explores a lesser-known part of World War II history. Itβs hard to say whether I would recommend this book due to the nature of it. However, if you find books set during WWII interesting then Iβd suggest giving this one a read.
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