The book explained in great detail the sacrifices, the fear, and the pain that these lithuanians faced. She and her younger brother, jonas, are the children of a college professor. Between shades of gray tells the individuals story that makes such cold facts meaningful. One of the first themes that you will get from this story is courage. Lina is fifteen years old when she is taken prisoner by the nkvd and it will. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading between shades of gray. Mar 20, 2016 over spring break i read between shades of gray published march 2011, a young adult historical fiction novel by ruta sepetys. Between shades of gray metaphors and similes gradesaver. American novelist ruta sepetys is the other of the new york times bestseller, between shades of grey. Need help on characters in ruta sepetyss between shades of gray. Its the story of 15yearold lina, her younger brother, and their mother, whom the soviets deport from their lithuanian home to a siberian labor camp in 1941.
The main characters of this young adult, historical story are lina, jonas. It follows the stalinist repressions of the mid20th century and follows the life of lina as she is deported from her native lithuania with her mother and younger brother, and the journey they take to a labor camp in lithuania. It is through her perspective that we experience the soviet genocide of lithuanians, as she serves as a witness to many atrocities and experiences the loss of both her parents. Characterization roles of minor characters elena vilkas. Between shades of gray by elizabeth anderson on prezi. Between shades of gray unit rebekahs teaching portfolio. Minor characters are memorably and vividly drawn, and the first half of the book, in particular, roars along. She looks at herself one more time in the mirror, because she knows that she wouldnt see herself for a long time. The titles grey s anatomy a tv drama and fifty shades of grey an erotic novel series by a british writer, e. Questions between shades of grey takes place in europe and russia some of it is in lithuania, but most of it is in siberia. Ruta sepetys was born november 19th, 1967 and eventually began her career as a lithuanianamerican writer.
Analyze how particular lines of dialogue or incidents in a story or drama propel the action, reveal aspects of a character, or provoke a decision 3. Gray and grey are both common spellings of the color between black and white. This book, published by peirene press, is an english translation of grinkeviciutes original memoirs that provided the general framework for between shades of gray. On the train to siberia, lina meets andrius arvydas. Between shades of gray major character analysis lina vilkas it is through her perspective that we experience the soviet genocide of lithuanians, as she serves as a witness to many atrocities and experiences the loss of both her parents. Learn more at about the author born and raised in michigan, ruta sepetys is the daughter of a. Author ruta sepetys talks about the true history behind. Between shades of grey was published march 22, 2011 and has been published in over 22 languages. Citation between shades of gray uwmadison libraries. Lina is fifteen when the russian soldiers arrest her.
In the book before lina leaves her house she heads to the bathroom. Between the shades of gray has been published in 27 different languages. Download the full discussion guide read an excerpt. Between shades of gray, a new york times best seller, is the debut novel of american novelist ruta sepetys. The varying usage of both grey and gray extends to specialized terms such as animal species gray grey whale and scientific terms gray grey matter. Elena vilkas this is linas mother, who is similar to glue, because shes optimistic and holds the group together, allowing them to survive one day at a time.
The between shades of gray community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and quizzes written by community members like you. These citations are software generated and may contain errors. D came and told lina, jonas and elna that they were being taken away, but not told were to. It was the last time i would look into a real mirror for more than a. The vilkas family originally lives in lithuania, a european country, near latvia and poland. Between shades of gray character descriptions for teachers. Sep 10, 2010 between shades of gray is a riveting novel that steals your breath, captures your heart, and reveals the miraculous nature of the human spirit. She is fifteen years old when the novel begins and, over the next. In holes, they dig the holes to find some sort of treasure, in shades of gray, they do it in order to stay alive. The first edition of the novel was published in march 22nd 2011, and was written by ruta sepetys.
The character of lina vilkas in between shades of gray. While reading between shades of gray you will see how much courage these people have. I swore it would grow to be a massive tree whose roots would strangle them all. Between shades of gray by ruta sepetys is a deeply moving, compelling, heartwrenching, and a powerful read which is beautifully written that captured my heart from the very first chapter. The family befriends fellow lithuanian deportees including andrius arvydas who later becomes linas love interest, mr. Between shades of gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart. Overall, the story of between shades of gray takes place in the european and asian continents. The timeline below shows where the character lina vilkas appears in between shades of gray. There is no real resolution or end to the story it just stops without allowing the reader to gain any sense of where the main character or anyone else is at the end. This was definitely another pageturner and extremely hard to put down. Lina she is a 15 year old girl that lives in lithuania during world war ii.
This is a moving story about the hardships of young people during the soviet regime. Between shades of gray kindle edition by sepetys, ruta. She is a precocious young lady but has the tendency to be impulsive with her words, which can get her into trouble at times. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Apart from a few overly dramatic metaphors, lina recounts her. She sent in an application for an art school and she got in, but then she got taken away by the nkvd. Rutas written work is delightful, and despite the fact that this isnt a romantic tale for me, it was excellent in its own specific manner. Gray is more frequent in american english, whereas grey is more common in british english. It follows the stalinist repressions of the mid20th century and follows the life of lina as she is deported from her native lithuania with her mother and younger brother, and the journey they take to a labor camp in siberia. Apr 03, 2012 between shades of gray is a document long overdue.
Lina vilkas is the protagonist of the book between shades of gray. Conflict one of the major conflicts that happend was the head commander of nkvd wanted everyone to sign this paper that said anyone who signs this has to be with them for twentyfive years and if you do something bad your years go up. They know something bad is coming but they try to stay positave and not give up hope. She has an interest in the world, her friends, and boys. I had no idea how quickly it was to change, to fade. He is around her age and traveling with his mother, who is never named past mrs. Her birthday is on march 22 and she met and fell in love with andrius, whom she marries, while moving from place to. To go through what they went through you have to be couragest. When a wounded christian grey tries to entice a cautious ana steele back into his life, she demands a new arrangement before she will give him another chance. Shades of gray is young adult historicalfiction about the aftermath american civil war. Start studying characters and summary of between shades of gray. If i had, i would have stared at my reflection, memorizing it. Lina vilkas is the major character in the book and also the narrator.
Characters and summary of between shades of gray flashcards. It follows the stalinist repressions of the mid20th century and follows the life of lina as she is deported from her native lithuania with her mother and younger brother and the journey they take to a laborcamp in siberia. You stand for what is right, lina, without the expectation of gratitude or reward. Ultimate caretaker shares rations, puts others first selfsacrificing her ultimate fate physically comforts children quick to diffuse conflicts among prisoners rarely sarcastic or. Between shades of gray is a riveting novel that steals your breath, captures your heart, and reveals the miraculous nature of the human spirit. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. The difference is in holes, they have to dig 5 foot holes, and in shades of gray, they have to dig 2 foot holes. This reminds me of when my cousin, vanessa, went on a trip to africa as a nurse. James have those spellings because they play on the names of characters named grey in those works. Between shades of gray characters from litcharts the creators of. The time period of the story begins in 1941, just before the ending of world war ii. Learn more at about the author born and raised in michigan, ruta sepetys is the daughter of a lithuanian refugee.
For example, in between shades of gray, one of the main officers were names nickolai kretzsky, even though he was one of stalins men he helped prisoners out more than the other officers. Lina vilkas protagonist long wavy honey coloured hair bright blue eyes headstrong was accepted into art school loves to write letters to her cousin joana and drawing in her sketch book. Free download or read online between shades of gray pdf epub book. It is through her viewpoint that we experience the soviet destruction of lithuanians, as she fills in as an observer to numerous barbarities and encounters the loss of both her folks. These praises said, the writing level for this novel was not without its flaws.
The character of lina vilkas in between shades of gray from. They had 20mins to pack all the things that are valuable or mean something. A tiny sliver of gold appeared between shades of gray on the horizon. Between shades of gray by ruta sepetys, paperback barnes. I feel grateful for a writer like ruta sepetys who bravely tells the hard story of what happens to the innocent when world leaders and their minions choose hate and. The novel, between shades of gray, mirrors the time period it took place in. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 344 pages and is available in hardcover format. Discussion of themes and motifs in ruta sepetys between shades of gray. I was snared with the story since the main section. D barracks to get her reward for the portrait, the officers threw the bread and potatoes at them, then started throwing garbage. Between shades of grey is a 2011 young adult historical fiction book and the debut novel of ruta sepetys. Christian grey from fifty shades of grey charactour.
During world war 2, the soviet union red army and the germany nazis were battling over the baltic states for power. Between shades of gray official book website for between. The story follows a 15yearold lithuanian girl in 1941 who is taken from her home with her mother and younger brother by the nkvd soviet secret police. These questions can help students dive deeper into this novel and its themes. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance. Between shades of gray major character analysis supersummary. They started from lithuania and ended up in a concentration camp in siberia and the novel described the. Between shades of gray important quotes supersummary. I shut the bathroom door and caught sight of my face in the mirror. Lina had to make the picture flattering but every time she looked at the commander all she saw was smoke and snakes crawling out of a grey skull lina and jonas went to the back of the n. Pdf between shades of gray book by ruta sepetys free.
The memoirs were thought to be lost, but in 1991, the jar was discovered and unearthed. Over spring break i read between shades of gray published march 2011, a young adult historical fiction novel by ruta sepetys. Ashes in the snow is a lithuanianamerican world war ii drama film based on the new york times best selling novel between shades of gray by ruta sepetys. Ruta sepetyss between shades of gray hits the big screen. Lina and her mother are forced to dig holes in order to get a small amount of bread. They battled back and forth soviet occupation1940 nazi occupation soviet. Between shades of gray unit plan organized by rebekah crawley. The slender breed of dog known for its racing abilities is called a greyhound, and it is consistently spelled that way. Parents need to know that between shades of gray is a story of horrific cruelty and violence for mature tweens and up. May 31, 2017 western washington university eng238 film trailer project. Between shades of gray quotes by ruta sepetys goodreads. She is fifteen years of age when the novel starts and, throughout the following quite a long while in soviet care, is compelled to grow up a lot.
Ruta sepetys between shades of gray audiobook free download. They started from lithuania and ended up in a concentration camp in siberia and the novel described the whole travel and setting just like in history. Recommended resources discussion guide between shades of gray. The between shades of gray community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography and. Between shades of gray follows the soviet oppression of the baltics, a moment rarely explored in historical fiction. This book gets a strong 3 for a variety of reasons. It is through her perspective that we experience the soviet genocide of lithuanians, as she serves as a witness to many.
Lina fights for her life, vowing that if she survives she will honor her family, and the thousands like hers, by burying her complete story in. The screenplay was written by ben york jones, but sepetys was an active collaborator in making the film adaptation of between shades of gray, serving as executive producer and traveling to. Related questions and answers for characters in shades of gray. The story begins in 1941, and the characters journey is completed. Richard peck, newbery awardwinning author of a year down yonder between shades of gray is a story of astonishing force. Lina vilkas is fifteen years old when she and her family are deported from their comfortable middle class home in lithuania in 1941.
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