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atan1101's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
jol69's review against another edition
5.0
A World War II novel told from a completely different perspective to the norm. Loved it!
alice_i's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
rpultorak's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
ashction's review against another edition
3.0
It's not the book. It's me.
During this lovely quarantine, my manager assigned us some reading challenges, one of which was to read out of our comfort zone. Historical fiction is one of the genres I notoriously consider very much out of my comfort zone (I like history, to an extent, but find it tends to be sad, depressing, and not something I want to read about), and since Ruta Sepetys is arguably one of the leading voices of YA Historical Fiction, I just had to finally read one of her books.
I picked the book I was least likely to enjoy to feel truly, completely out of my comfort zone. Salt to the Sea follows four main characters: Joanna, a Lithuanian nurse attempting to help refugees reach safety; Florian, a thief on the run; Emilia, a young girl with burdens and secrets; and Alfred, a German soldier upon one of Germany's largest ships that sunk tragically during WWII.
The story was interesting; I read it quickly enough, and there's no doubt that Sepetys is a skilled writer who's done ample research for this novel. Like I mentioned, I chose this book as my least likely to enjoy. I hate reading about war, especially, and I avoid sadness whenever possible in fiction, so I knew this one was sure to hit at all the things that made me the most uncomfortable about historical fiction. While I did feel those things, I did have a generally good time reading the book. It was just so, so sad, and the end was so abrupt! I read it as an ebook, so I'm not sure if maybe some font style and transitioning from the print copy just didn't make it to the digital copy, but it wasn't clear that the final chapter was a time jump and it definitely soured the ending for me.
Of course, I'm a sucker for a good happy ending, too. And while there was some happiness, it was pretty bleak. While this one may not have been THE book for me (and that was the goal!), I do think I liked Sepetys' writing enough to test out some of her other books. Out of the Easy sounds like a good blend of a genre I'm not familiar with and mysteries that I love, so maybe I'll try that, next.
During this lovely quarantine, my manager assigned us some reading challenges, one of which was to read out of our comfort zone. Historical fiction is one of the genres I notoriously consider very much out of my comfort zone (I like history, to an extent, but find it tends to be sad, depressing, and not something I want to read about), and since Ruta Sepetys is arguably one of the leading voices of YA Historical Fiction, I just had to finally read one of her books.
I picked the book I was least likely to enjoy to feel truly, completely out of my comfort zone. Salt to the Sea follows four main characters: Joanna, a Lithuanian nurse attempting to help refugees reach safety; Florian, a thief on the run; Emilia, a young girl with burdens and secrets; and Alfred, a German soldier upon one of Germany's largest ships that sunk tragically during WWII.
The story was interesting; I read it quickly enough, and there's no doubt that Sepetys is a skilled writer who's done ample research for this novel. Like I mentioned, I chose this book as my least likely to enjoy. I hate reading about war, especially, and I avoid sadness whenever possible in fiction, so I knew this one was sure to hit at all the things that made me the most uncomfortable about historical fiction. While I did feel those things, I did have a generally good time reading the book. It was just so, so sad, and the end was so abrupt! I read it as an ebook, so I'm not sure if maybe some font style and transitioning from the print copy just didn't make it to the digital copy, but it wasn't clear that the final chapter was a time jump and it definitely soured the ending for me.
Of course, I'm a sucker for a good happy ending, too. And while there was some happiness, it was pretty bleak. While this one may not have been THE book for me (and that was the goal!), I do think I liked Sepetys' writing enough to test out some of her other books. Out of the Easy sounds like a good blend of a genre I'm not familiar with and mysteries that I love, so maybe I'll try that, next.
brianna_c's review against another edition
5.0
This book gripped me from start to finished. It was beautiful and heartbreaking in the best of ways. I adored so many of these characters and detested one in particular. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone,especially lovers of history.
rebeccasreadingrambles's review against another edition
5.0
Wow. I was really blown away by this book. I had read Between Shades of Gray by this author and really enjoyed that book. But this one seemed even more powerful. I started it and suddenly found myself halfway through without realizing it. The characters are so raw and I felt their every hurt and fear. The writing was just superb. The author did a great job of painting the desperate landscape without too many words. The sections with short thoughts into each character's head were especially well done. I became attached to the characters, even though I knew that they had barely a chance to survive. Near the end I found myself actually whimpering out loud, in public. Alfred's POV was especially chilling as we got deeper and deeper into his troubled mind. I have read a lot of HF books, but have never read a book quite like this. So emotion and so amazing.
sashapasha's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
This is an important book for shedding light on the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, which has the highest death toll of any sinking in history with an estimate of 9,400 people. To put it into perspective, approximately 1,500 people died on the Titanic. And yet the Gustloff has faded from memory and it seems like few people know about it. I certainly didn't, until I read this book.
The importance of the subject material aside, I was pretty frustrated by the way this book is written, particularly in the first half. It's structured to include as many dramatic pauses as feasibly possible. The chapters are short and swap POVs between four protagonists, and every single switch is designed to leave the reader hanging in an attempt to build suspense. Things that the protagonists know or witness are purposefully omitted so that the reader is left wondering. Sometimes this style of writing works, usually when the protagonist has a good reason to leave something out from their internal narration (e.g. a deep, dark, repressed secret), but it was egregiously overused in this book in a way that felt cheap.
Overlooking the writing style, the characters were alright, some more enjoyable to read about than others.
One of the protagonists, Alfred, acted as the primary antagonist, representing the inhuman callousness of the Nazi party and the indoctrination and egotism of the "brave soldier" mindset, which he used as a shield to hide from his own insecurities and cowardice.
The other protagonists, Joana, Florian, and Emilia, were more pleasant, though I was occasionally annoyed by inconsistencies in their characters, particularly Emilia's. I did like the old shoemaker and all his shoe-related wisdom.
Overall I'm not certain how much I recommend this book. In comparison to the other WWII story I've read this month [b:All the Light We Cannot See|18143977|All the Light We Cannot See|Anthony Doerr|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451445646l/18143977._SY75_.jpg|25491300], it is designed to be more accessible and is very clearly aimed at a younger audience. It has a much more defined story arc and plot. In contrast, All the Light meanders about and leaves you feeling the pointlessness of war via the pointlessness of the plot. As an adult novel, All the Light has much more realistic and nuanced characters.
I did find Salt to the Sea moving towards the end, especially the author's note. But considering the subject material I must've been curiously detached, because it was not nearly as heart-wrenching as it could've been. In comparison, [b:Code Name Verity|11925514|Code Name Verity|Elizabeth Wein|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388161911l/11925514._SY75_.jpg|16885788] had me bawling my eyes out. Still, I'd say learning about the Gustloff makes Salt to the Sea worthwhile and the story is engaging enough.
This is an important book for shedding light on the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, which has the highest death toll of any sinking in history with an estimate of 9,400 people. To put it into perspective, approximately 1,500 people died on the Titanic. And yet the Gustloff has faded from memory and it seems like few people know about it. I certainly didn't, until I read this book.
The importance of the subject material aside, I was pretty frustrated by the way this book is written, particularly in the first half. It's structured to include as many dramatic pauses as feasibly possible. The chapters are short and swap POVs between four protagonists, and every single switch is designed to leave the reader hanging in an attempt to build suspense. Things that the protagonists know or witness are purposefully omitted so that the reader is left wondering. Sometimes this style of writing works, usually when the protagonist has a good reason to leave something out from their internal narration (e.g. a deep, dark, repressed secret), but it was egregiously overused in this book in a way that felt cheap.
Overlooking the writing style, the characters were alright, some more enjoyable to read about than others.
One of the protagonists, Alfred, acted as the primary antagonist, representing the inhuman callousness of the Nazi party and the indoctrination and egotism of the "brave soldier" mindset, which he used as a shield to hide from his own insecurities and cowardice.
The other protagonists, Joana, Florian, and Emilia, were more pleasant, though I was occasionally annoyed by inconsistencies in their characters, particularly Emilia's. I did like the old shoemaker and all his shoe-related wisdom.
Overall I'm not certain how much I recommend this book. In comparison to the other WWII story I've read this month [b:All the Light We Cannot See|18143977|All the Light We Cannot See|Anthony Doerr|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1451445646l/18143977._SY75_.jpg|25491300], it is designed to be more accessible and is very clearly aimed at a younger audience. It has a much more defined story arc and plot. In contrast, All the Light meanders about and leaves you feeling the pointlessness of war via the pointlessness of the plot. As an adult novel, All the Light has much more realistic and nuanced characters.
I did find Salt to the Sea moving towards the end, especially the author's note. But considering the subject material I must've been curiously detached, because it was not nearly as heart-wrenching as it could've been. In comparison, [b:Code Name Verity|11925514|Code Name Verity|Elizabeth Wein|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388161911l/11925514._SY75_.jpg|16885788] had me bawling my eyes out. Still, I'd say learning about the Gustloff makes Salt to the Sea worthwhile and the story is engaging enough.