Communism Like You Have Never Experienced It

Ruta Sepetys is best known for her ability to cut to the heart of the matter and the reader's heart at the same time. Her stories are horrific and this one is no exception. Romania is a country few of us know much about and we cannot even begin to understand what they went through under this killer regime but writing these stories helps. Young adults and adults alike now can experience some of the same fear, horror and bravery that these young people went through as well as read an excellent work of historical fiction. Even her short sentence structure and short chapters heighten the sense of fear and oppression. While I will never be able to understand what it is like to live in a police state like a bug under the glass, I have a better appreciation for the freedoms we have always taken for granted. The cover art is well done and enough to pull me in even if I wasn't familiar with the author's work.