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A review by cpcabaniss
Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys
5.0
March 2020 Review
I've been wanting to reread this book ever since I finished my second reading back in July 2018. I've finally done so and it was just as good as I remember. Ruta has a way of pulling me into a story, making me feel like I'm right there with the characters, living their nightmares, sharing their hopes. Historical fiction is a special kind of reading experience, because it opens my eyes to portions of history I may not have known about otherwise.
This reread was done through the audiobook once again and I like that format just as much as reading the physical book. If you haven't read this story, I recommend it with my whole heart. It's tragic and it's beautiful, just like life can be.
Reread July 2018
This was an even more powerful book on reread than it was the first time through. There are so many details I noticed this time and the foreshadowing is incredible. It's a heartbreaking tale, but something that should be talked about. Although these are characters, they could very well be the stories of real people who lived and died on the Wilhelm Gustloff.
I love almost all of the characters in this. The shoe poet is an early favorite, but I think that Emilia might top the list. Her strength and willingness to sacrifice are amazing. So much hurt has happened in her short life, but she doesn't let it break her. And she cares deeply, even when she hurts.
There is a romance in this, but I don't think it is overdone. It unfolds slowly and beautifully. When surrounded by darkness, it would only be natural to seek out the light.
My original rating was four stars, but I have thought about this book regularly since I first read it and the reread was even better than that, so I am boosting my rating to a full five stars.
Original Review
Until I heard about this book, I had never heard of the Wilhelm Gustloff, so this brought something new to my attention and I am grateful for that. I love learning new things and for some reason I have always enjoyed learning about World War II. You can see humanity at its best and at its worst.
Salt to the Sea follows four main characters who are on course to converge with the Wilhelm Gustloff. There is Joana, the nurse from Lithuania, Emilia, the Polish girl with the pink cap, Alfred, the German sailor, and Florian, the Prussian with a treasure.
Through these characters, Sepetys is able to bring historic events to life. That is one of the greatest things about historical fiction: it allows an emotional connection that simple numbers and statistics do not. The characters might be fictional, but their situations are not.
Aside from Alfred, who I had a hard time connecting with on any level, I really loved the characters. They suffered, but they did not allow themselves to be beaten. Although they witnessed tragedy after tragedy, they still had hope.
There is a romance within the story and I know that some readers will not like that. And while it isn't entirely necessary, I like how Sepetys is able to weave something like falling in love into a story that is full of human cruelty and horror. Because that's reality.
This story made me very curious to look into the history surrounding the Wilhelm Gustloff, because, like Sepetys said in her author note, we need to learn the history so it doesn't die along with those who lived it.
I listened to the audio version of this which was narrated by Jorjeana Marie, Will Damron, Cassandra Morris, and Michael Crouch. I enjoyed all of the narrators and liked that each point of view was narrated by someone different, as it allowed me to separate them as distinct individuals in my mind.
"Two warring nations gripped Poland like girls fighting over a doll. One held the leg, the other the arm. They pulled so hard that one day, the head popped off."
I've been wanting to reread this book ever since I finished my second reading back in July 2018. I've finally done so and it was just as good as I remember. Ruta has a way of pulling me into a story, making me feel like I'm right there with the characters, living their nightmares, sharing their hopes. Historical fiction is a special kind of reading experience, because it opens my eyes to portions of history I may not have known about otherwise.
This reread was done through the audiobook once again and I like that format just as much as reading the physical book. If you haven't read this story, I recommend it with my whole heart. It's tragic and it's beautiful, just like life can be.
Reread July 2018
"War had bled color from everything, leaving nothing but a storm of gray."
This was an even more powerful book on reread than it was the first time through. There are so many details I noticed this time and the foreshadowing is incredible. It's a heartbreaking tale, but something that should be talked about. Although these are characters, they could very well be the stories of real people who lived and died on the Wilhelm Gustloff.
I love almost all of the characters in this. The shoe poet is an early favorite, but I think that Emilia might top the list. Her strength and willingness to sacrifice are amazing. So much hurt has happened in her short life, but she doesn't let it break her. And she cares deeply, even when she hurts.
There is a romance in this, but I don't think it is overdone. It unfolds slowly and beautifully. When surrounded by darkness, it would only be natural to seek out the light.
My original rating was four stars, but I have thought about this book regularly since I first read it and the reread was even better than that, so I am boosting my rating to a full five stars.
Original Review
"Your daughter, your sister. She is salt to the sea."
Until I heard about this book, I had never heard of the Wilhelm Gustloff, so this brought something new to my attention and I am grateful for that. I love learning new things and for some reason I have always enjoyed learning about World War II. You can see humanity at its best and at its worst.
Salt to the Sea follows four main characters who are on course to converge with the Wilhelm Gustloff. There is Joana, the nurse from Lithuania, Emilia, the Polish girl with the pink cap, Alfred, the German sailor, and Florian, the Prussian with a treasure.
Through these characters, Sepetys is able to bring historic events to life. That is one of the greatest things about historical fiction: it allows an emotional connection that simple numbers and statistics do not. The characters might be fictional, but their situations are not.
Aside from Alfred, who I had a hard time connecting with on any level, I really loved the characters. They suffered, but they did not allow themselves to be beaten. Although they witnessed tragedy after tragedy, they still had hope.
“Just when you think this war has taken everything you loved, you meet someone and realize that somehow you still have more to give.”
There is a romance within the story and I know that some readers will not like that. And while it isn't entirely necessary, I like how Sepetys is able to weave something like falling in love into a story that is full of human cruelty and horror. Because that's reality.
This story made me very curious to look into the history surrounding the Wilhelm Gustloff, because, like Sepetys said in her author note, we need to learn the history so it doesn't die along with those who lived it.
I listened to the audio version of this which was narrated by Jorjeana Marie, Will Damron, Cassandra Morris, and Michael Crouch. I enjoyed all of the narrators and liked that each point of view was narrated by someone different, as it allowed me to separate them as distinct individuals in my mind.