A review by morgob
Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys

5.0

What a great historical fiction perspective. Like probably many others, I had no knowledge of the Wilhelm Gustloff prior to reading this. I just thought there were so many wonderful things the author did with this book. It was very simple, writing-wise. I think this book is meant for younger readers, which is great. I actually recommended it to my students because we're in the middle of reading The Book Thief right now and I thought this links well with that. They don't realize just how many different perspectives there are of WWII and the events surrounding it. I enjoyed hearing from all of the characters because their perspectives were so different. The only thing I wish is that the book were longer and a bit more drawn-out. Each of the characters have a past that ties to where they are now, and I think it would have benefited the book to have more of a full story for each of them. It did seem like, for quite a few of the characters, their full stories came out right at the end. I think if it mattered that much, it shouldn't be a last-minute reveal. Besides that, I really enjoyed it. There are so many people who went through the events of WWII and events caused by it that were neither Jewish nor Nazis, and I think we need to tell more of those stories as well. People don't often know much about WWII besides those two perspectives, and their stories are important as well. I liked this book a lot and I enjoy the fact that it is an untold story of sorts, for most people. It shows that war hurts everyone involved in countless ways, but it also shows that even when humans show their worst capabilities, some humans will show the best of themselves to others as well.