Revolution

Bibliography
Wiles, Deborah. Revolution: The Sixties Trilogy Book Two. Scholastic, 2014.
image from: (http://deborahwiles.com/site/books-2/revolution-coming-may-2014/)

Summary:(from http://deborahwiles.com/site/books-2/revolution-coming-may-2014)

It’s 1964, and Sunny’s town is being invaded. Or at least that’s what the adults of Greenwood, Mississippi are saying. All Sunny knows is that people from up north are coming to help people register to vote. They’re calling it Freedom Summer.

Meanwhile, Sunny can’t help but feel like her house is being invaded, too. She has a new stepmother, a new brother, and a new sister crowding her life, giving her little room to breathe. And things get even trickier when Sunny and her brother are caught sneaking into the local swimming pool — where they bump into a mystery boy whose life is going to become tangled up in theirs.

As she did in her groundbreaking documentary novel COUNTDOWN award-winning author Deborah Wiles uses stories and images to tell the riveting story of a certain time and place — and of kids who, in a world where everyone is choosing sides, must figure out how to stand up for themselves and fight for what’s right.

My Thoughts
I was afraid of reading this book without having read Book One, but it wasn't a problem. This is mostly 12 year old Sunny's story of growing up in Greenwood, Mississippi during the 1960s.  "I was there" (Wiles 420). The book itself is over 500 pages in length, divided into three parts. The first 40 pages were pictures, headlines and song lyrics to set up the story. This kind of primary source connection is sprinkled throughout the book.

There are several characters, but it isn't hard to keep up with them. I recognized Meemaw, even though my own grandmothers were not like her. I enjoyed having "Sunday lunch" at her house. She is described as a school teacher for 42 years and a "stickler for correct reporting and good punctuation" (Wiles 212). Maybe I see a little of myself in her character, especially when it's mentioned she watched Guiding Light (my all time FAVORITE soap opera!). I also like Daddy. He was a prominent business owner in the town where everyone knows everyone else. He is kind and tries to do the "right" thing, even when it isn't the popular thing.

There are actually many narrators in this story. While we see Sunny's white side of events, we also get a glimpse into Ray's black side. We see what's happening from Gillette's point of view. We get a historical perspective from the headlines, pamphlets and sermons. It is a tumultuous read (mirroring the time period the story is set). Slowly a revolution is boiling--We see the juxtaposition of Christian attitudes versus actions. There are Bible versus and Sunday School songs used throughout the book. There is a tense tone in the narrative. We see that the women are making things change (pages 353-361).

This is how it works. Everything is connected. Every choice matters. Every person is vital, and valuable, and worthy of respect. (Wiles 361)

As I read, I had questions about things. What exactly was an "associate"? Was this the Klan? Did Sunny's mom die or not? How much of this story is revisionist history or manipulative narrative? Why did Ray have to get shot?

Wiles gives us a six page summation of Freedom Summer.  Her acknowledgements also thank the many people and places she used for research. 

Between Shades of Grey

Bibliography
Sepetys, Ruta. Between Shades of Gray. Read by Emily Klein. Penguin Audio, 2011.

image from: https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/63744/between-shades-of-gray-by-ruta-sepetys/

Summary (from www.betweenshadesofgray.com)

In 1941, fifteen-year-old Lina is preparing for art school, first dates, and all that summer has to offer. But one night, the Soviet secret police barge violently into her home, deporting her along with her mother and younger brother. They are being sent to Siberia. Lina's father has been separated from the family and sentenced to death in a prison camp. All is lost.

Lina fights for her life, fearless, vowing that if she survives she will honor her family, and the thousands like hers, by documenting their experience in her art and writing. She risks everything to use her art as messages, hoping they will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive.

It is a long and harrowing journey, and it is only their incredible strength, love, and hope that pull Lina and her family through each day. But will love be enough to keep them alive?

Between Shades of Gray is a riveting novel that steals your breath, captures your heart, and reveals the miraculous nature of the human spirit.

I'm also including the audiobook summary because I think it gives some more insight. (from https://www.audiofilemagazine.com/reviews/read/63744/between-shades-of-gray-by-ruta-sepetys/)

Emily Klein quickly convinces listeners of the harsh reality and perceptive viewpoint of Lina, an artistic 15-year-old Lithuanian. Klein’s evocative inflections mirror Lina’s family’s confusion and fear as they’re woken by Stalin’s soldiers and loaded onto cattle cars labeled “Thieves and Prostitutes,” which are headed to a labor camp in Siberia. Klein doesn’t hold back from the story’s intensity—portraying the brutality, filth, bitter cold, and sometimes brief tenderness that buoys Lina, giving her the resilience to record all she sees with her art, hoping that one day it tells the story she can’t. Relief comes as well in the well-drawn, well-acted vignettes of Lina’s formerly happy life in Lithuania. Klein also draws credible portraits of Lina’s mother, brother, and fellow prisoners. An author’s note strengthens this little-known part of history. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2011]

This photo was taken at TLA 2017. 

My Thoughts
This isn't the book you might think it is! This is historical fiction about the Soviet overtaking of Lithuania.  The book is 85 chapters in length.

Sepetys does a fantastic job weaving history into an interesting narrative. She uses her own family's history as the genesis for a relatively unknown piece of WWII history. At the end of the audiobook, Sepetys gives her personal story with a small history lesson. It is moving what she did for research. Her goal is for this slice of history to not be lost.

Often in school, I was taught about the Jewish Holocaust. I've read multiple stories, seen movies and researched texts about the concentration camps and have even visited two. However, I've never studied much about what was happening in Russia during this time. Back in the spring I listened to a book (Symphony for the City of the Dead ) that gave me insight into the "real" Russia during this time period. Stalin killed so many more people than Hitler! Between Shades of Gray tells me of what happened to the Lithuanians and adds to my knowledge. I just didn't know.

I listened to this story when I could, so it took me several out of town volleyball games to hear how Lina & her family were able to endure and survive their deportation. When they were sent to the Arctic, I know the temperature in my car got colder.

As I listened, I thought about being in high school and hearing on the news about the division of the USSR and much of western Russia breaking up into many other countries (like I just refer to as the "ickstans"). I don't think I realized until listening to this story that those countries actually existed BEFORE 1991.

I love that I'm still learning. I love that fiction can bring alive the facts for me. I've noticed that I've read or listened to several historical fiction books, and most of them are set during WWII.

The title of the book doesn't surface until almost the end of the story. Sepetys explains in the author's note that "between shades of gray, sometimes there's a small crack that lets the love shine in."

Phonetically, /ze pet ees/ is how you pronounce her last name (I can't type the accent marks).

Read the book. Would you survive?