Salt to the Sea

#1 New York Times bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal! 

"A superlative novel . . . masterfully crafted."--The Wall Street Journal

Based on "the forgotten tragedy that was six times deadlier than the Titanic."--Time

Winter 1945. WWII. Four refugees. Four stories.

Each one born of a different homeland; each one hunted, and haunted, by tragedy, lies, war. As thousands desperately flock to the coast in the midst of a Soviet advance, four paths converge, vying for passage aboard the Wilhelm Gustloff, a ship that promises safety and freedom. But not all promises can be kept . . .

This paperback edition includes book club questions and exclusive interviews with Wilhelm Gustloff survivors and experts.

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Published Aug 1, 2017

448 pages

Average rating: 8.27

271 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

Across the Globe Book Buddies
Oct 19, 2025
10/10 stars
Loved.This.Book! I'm so glad to have stumbled upon this author as I really enjoyed her writing style, specifically her use of words and phrasing. The structure of this book - small chapters told from each of the protagonist's perspectives - was also quite engaging, for me. It kept it/me moving at a quick clip. I enjoyed "meeting" each of the characters, ha, as I write, realizing I really enjoyed Alfred's character, very well done! However, each of the character's were very-well written and enjoyable to meet and get to know in their own ways. Learning more about history (why couldn't middle, high-school and college-level history have been as interesting as this author's presentation) was also engaging, if not sobering. I very much look forward to my next RS's reads!

Oh, purely an aside: I had not appreciated this was identified as a YA book until after completion and "tagging" in Goodreads. If I were still teaching, and needed to cover WWII, we would most definitely incorporate this book in some manner!
K Olson
Jan 14, 2025
10/10 stars
Beautifully written historical fiction- not just for YA.
Auburn283
Jul 19, 2024
10/10 stars
Enjoyed learning the history. Characters were interesting and diverse.
KatieM
Oct 03, 2025
Amazing, drew me in from first chapter. Read/listened on audible in less than a week.
literarily_occupied
Aug 12, 2025
9/10 stars
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