Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys {Book Review}
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Pages: 393
"Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies…and war.
As thousands of desperate refugees flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom.
Yet not all promises can be kept.
Inspired by the single greatest tragedy in maritime history, bestselling and award-winning author Ruta Sepetys (Between Shades of Gray) lifts the veil on a shockingly little-known casualty of World War II. An illuminating and life-affirming tale of heart and hope."
This book follows the story of four young people during world war II. The Russians are pushing further into Germany, people need to evacuate, this story focuses on the four young people trying to escape Germany. There are so many refugees and yet not enough ways to safely transport so many people. The four people this story focuses on are lucky enough to get onto a ship after a long time of travelling by foot! The ship they boarded 'Wilhelm Gustloff' is very over crowded and there are not enough life boats...
Little is actually known about Wilhelm Gustloff and the sinking during the second World War. 9000 people died on that ship that sadly sunk. Over half of those were children.
An utterly heartbreaking story. The characters were all very interesting and I felt I got to know them very well indeed. There's a lot of mystery which I really enjoyed and was very clever the way the story is told. This book was beautifully written and I was finding myself reading fast, it was hard to put down. I have read 'Between Shades Of Grey' (A couple of years ago) by the same author and 'Salt To The Sea' reminded me of Between Shades Of Grey. I later realised that the characters are indeed connected! I love that the books were connected, I wish I had of picked up on it a lot sooner than I did! Very cleverly written. I hope that one day 'Salt To The Sea' becomes a movie because if it's done in the right way, it would be amazing!
(You don't need to rad Between Shades Of Grey first, Salt To The Sea will still make perfect sense.)
I'm going to re-read 'Between shades of grey' next! I also feel inspired to learn more about the '
Wilhelm Gustloff' ship that sank.
If you like Historical Fiction I know you will enjoy this book!
Absolutely fantastic read. Rated 5 stars.
Sarah xXx
11 comments
I've not heard of this author before but sounds like this is rather an emotional read, thanks for sharing with #ReadWithMe
ReplyDeleteThis sounds a very interesting read. I had never heard of this tragedy before. It's hard to get your head round 9000 people dying :( I will have to check this out, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a huge fan of historical fiction but I like the sound of this book. Should I read Shades of Grey First?
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I'd say yes, read 'Between Shades Of Grey' first but you do not need to read it first, 'Salt To Sea' still makes sense and lots of people haven't read Between Shades Of Grey. Between Shades Of grey is one of my favourites and I can't recommend it enough - It is sad though so be prepared. xx
DeleteWhat a sad story! An interesting read though I'd think - love learning about history through novels.
ReplyDeleteNot heard of this author or book before but it sounds decent! Might put it in my wishlist :)
ReplyDeleteI dont think I have ever read a Historical fiction book before, this sounds pretty good to me though x
ReplyDeleteOh, what a terrible tragedy. I like books where all the stories fit together but I'm not sure I'd want to read this book.
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Wow 5 stars! I would like to read this book.
ReplyDeleteMy little boy used to be obsessed with ships so I've watched a doc about the Wilhelm Gustloff. They think many more may have died as they didn't really know how many were on the ship, an absolute horrific tragedy.
ReplyDeleteI'm sad to say I've never heard of this tragedy but I'd like to learn more. I'm definitely sold on this book after reading your review! #readwithme
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