![Alexander Oki ‘28 picks up trash in the lower parking lot Feb. 20. According to Keep America Beautiful, the majority of the trash found on both roads and waterways consists of fast food wrappers and packaging, receipts and plastic beverage bottles. Clubs like the National Honor Society (NHS) offer students the opportunity to earn service hours by cleaning up the trash in the parking lots. “[The trash] makes us look very unhygienic and unmotivated to be a proper school,” Emberlyse Vidal ‘28 said. “It makes us look like we just don't care about our students' environments.”](https://rockmediaonline.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/20260220_1355020-2-1200x904.jpg)
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Publisher: Philomel Books (primary) and Penguin Random House (globally)
Other Books Published: Between Shades of Gray, Out of the Easy, Salt to the Sea, The Fountains of Silence, I Must Betray You, The Bletchley Riddle, Fortune of Sand
Price: $8. 53 for paperback and $10.51 for hardback in Target, $8.53-10.79 for paperback and $10.51-17.46 for hardback in Walmart, $13.99 for paperback and $18.99-20.99 for hardback at Barnes&Noble, $8.53-18.00 for paperback and $9.76+ for hardcover on Amazon.
Targeted Audience: YA
Description
When war strikes, it destroys everything that lies in its wake: land, homes and families. “Between Shades of Gray” by Ruta Sepetys is a historical novel that follows the journey of Lina Vilkas as her family is put on a crowded train by Soviet Union soldiers and shipped off to who knows where. Along the way, Lina learns to survive the harsh climates of Russia, while leaving drawings behind her, hoping that her dad may find them and save their family.
Overall Highlight
The highlight was definitely the romance between Lina and Andrius throughout the novel. In a rivals-to-lovers trope, Andrius and Lina became each other’s reason to survive and fight against Stalin’s oppression against Lithuanian. Their relationship acts as a sanctuary, allowing them to maintain their humanity and dignity despite suffering.
Plot
The plot of the novel was 4.8 stars in my books. It was good until the part where they arrived at the camp Trofimovsk, located in the Arctic region of Siberia, Russia, where the remaining chapters were mostly about them surviving in the camp. As someone who loves to read and watch an action-packed book or movie, when the novel slows down, my brain instantly gets bored, and I dread finishing the book.
A Shortcoming
A flaw in the novel was how the last chapter was written and ended. The majority of the book was slow, detailed and very immersive, so when the ending jumps forward and wraps everything up quickly, it doesn’t feel like the story actually ended.
Final Thoughts
Shades of Gray wasn’t just a novel that tells about history; it’s a novel that makes sure that forgotten history is never truly gone. Despite being a book that I was required to read, the novel quickly became one of my favorites.
