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.
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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Community Reviews
This hurt. I knew it would, which is why I took so long. But it finished beautifully and I felt comforted even in the sadness. It's a good book and should be shared.
This is an excellent book! It is very well written and a story that we should all know. Thank you Ruta Sepetys for shedding light on a dark story in such a remarkable way.
I first came across Salt to the Sea while at the SE-YA festival in March. Ms. Sepetys was there, and while I didn't get a chance to meet her, or buy one of her books, there were a lot of people standing around talking about them. There were many other times this book kept popping up everywhere but when it was picked as the Book of the Month for May for a book club I'm in, it was A SIGN.
I wish I would have read it sooner!
I'm not one to often suffer such great emotional turmoil from a book, however. This book left me hollowed out. Gutted. Utterly breathless. I'm still sitting here feeling... I don't know what I'm feeling, but when I think about this book, weeks after finishing, I still get teary eyed.
What saddens me the most, was how much I did NOT know about this maritime tragedy and how many others I've asked don't know about it, too. It's HUGE. I'm struggling to understand the sheer lack of knowledge on it. Of course, after finishing I took to the good ol World Wide Web and did find quite a bit of information, but nothing in the amount of research that Ms. Sepetys did for the book. It wasn't just the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, there were many historical moments mentioned that happened during the war and this time period. These things are so hard for me to read, but it was Ms. Sepetys writing that made it worthwhile. I mean, I knew how things were going to go. There's this dark cloud hanging over you while reading that is an omen for bad things to come. But within all that is hope too, and love.
We get the story told from 4 different characters view. Each character has their own story. Their own journey. Their own secrets. It was fascinating how each story slowly wove itself together until the end. You wouldn't think with so many different POV and short chapters I would have had such a connection to their story, but I did. We don't learn everything there is to know about each character. Rather, there is much left out. But that didn't stop me from being wholly invested and devastated by the outcome(s) of some of the characters.
All in all - I loved it! It's emotionally wrecking but well worth it. Seriously, READ THIS BOOK. It's my favorite book read this month (May) and one of my favorite books read of all time.
I wish I would have read it sooner!
I'm not one to often suffer such great emotional turmoil from a book, however. This book left me hollowed out. Gutted. Utterly breathless. I'm still sitting here feeling... I don't know what I'm feeling, but when I think about this book, weeks after finishing, I still get teary eyed.
What saddens me the most, was how much I did NOT know about this maritime tragedy and how many others I've asked don't know about it, too. It's HUGE. I'm struggling to understand the sheer lack of knowledge on it. Of course, after finishing I took to the good ol World Wide Web and did find quite a bit of information, but nothing in the amount of research that Ms. Sepetys did for the book. It wasn't just the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, there were many historical moments mentioned that happened during the war and this time period. These things are so hard for me to read, but it was Ms. Sepetys writing that made it worthwhile. I mean, I knew how things were going to go. There's this dark cloud hanging over you while reading that is an omen for bad things to come. But within all that is hope too, and love.
We get the story told from 4 different characters view. Each character has their own story. Their own journey. Their own secrets. It was fascinating how each story slowly wove itself together until the end. You wouldn't think with so many different POV and short chapters I would have had such a connection to their story, but I did. We don't learn everything there is to know about each character. Rather, there is much left out. But that didn't stop me from being wholly invested and devastated by the outcome(s) of some of the characters.
All in all - I loved it! It's emotionally wrecking but well worth it. Seriously, READ THIS BOOK. It's my favorite book read this month (May) and one of my favorite books read of all time.
If I had to summarise it in one word, I would say this book was beautiful.
Even when I had trouble following the story in the beginning because of the alternating points of view, I caught on quite quickly and I think the story was best told from different perspectives, all of them showing a different side to it, a different way of understanding it. They all come from different backgrounds, they all carry with them their family history, their grief for someone lost, their guilt. Guilt is a big theme in this book. They all wish they had done something different, they all feel responsible for having caused someone else's fate to turn against them.
The voice that bothered me the most was Alfred's. It took me a couple chapters to realise his words were masking his delusion. And even though necessary, his presence in the story bothered me greatly. I did appreciate having his voice join the overall tale, though. His was a voice that reflected the adhesion to the regime, the brainwashing and subsequent blind adoration to the fuhrer Germans had. It gave the novel depth and showed that, in the end, on that ship, they were all victims.
I loved all the other voices, even the Poet's and Klaus's (even though they didn't get to have their own chapters). Their presence made the story poetic (redundant, but I lack the right words) and full-bodied. It pained me so much to see the Poet sink.
I also loved Emilia's innocence and selflessness. I kept hoping till the very end that she would be reunited with her baby and the group. She was the one keeping them together. Joana was my favourite. And Florian's words to Emilia and her baby will forever be etched in my memory: "She is you. She is your mother. She is your father. She is Poland." I cry now remembering it. It was so meaningful and so powerful.
The ending caught me off-guard. I kept looking at the percentage of the book I was at and it looked far from the ending, but it ended nonetheless. It was quite puzzling to see it end on a letter, to have the story cut so abruptly and jump to a letter written by someone I didn't know, hinting at many many things that were left unsaid for me to guess. My favourite part about happy endings is knowing how they got to be there and I felt robbed of that, but I guess my imagination can fill in the gaps. I can almost see Florian wet and shivering on the rescue boat, adopting Joana's name, claiming himself part of her family, the children between them; both arriving to safety hand in hand; helping each other through the nightmares and night terrors; raising the children and honoring their origins, their parents, their land. I loved (and had to read twice) how the letter so respectfully and so lovingly talks about Emilia. That's something else that brings tears to my eyes again.
Now, about the remaining almost 20% of the book after its ending. After the story ends, the author includes the bibliography she consulted to carry out her investigation; she also acknowledges all the survivors and the people she talked to to get her story straight, and she even includes interviews with the divers that got the opportunity to visit the underwater remains of the sunken ship, as well as the sketch one of them did of the ship laying almost on its side at the bottom of the sea. Their words talk about the tragedy, the loss of many innocent lives, how all of them were relieved to get on a ship that would take them to safety after a grueling walk of days on end, only to be now resting underwater.
Historic fiction is one of my favourite genres to read, and I really appreciate and admire when authors actually go to great lengths to research the topic they're covering so as to honor and make justice to the victims, their history, their losses, and their suffering.
The fact that this tale of violence and loss is still unknown to the world baffles me. The sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was a tragedy bigger than the Titanic in many aspects, but it was left behind in history. I feel like this novel makes it, though very slightly, a bit better.
Even when I had trouble following the story in the beginning because of the alternating points of view, I caught on quite quickly and I think the story was best told from different perspectives, all of them showing a different side to it, a different way of understanding it. They all come from different backgrounds, they all carry with them their family history, their grief for someone lost, their guilt. Guilt is a big theme in this book. They all wish they had done something different, they all feel responsible for having caused someone else's fate to turn against them.
The voice that bothered me the most was Alfred's. It took me a couple chapters to realise his words were masking his delusion. And even though necessary, his presence in the story bothered me greatly. I did appreciate having his voice join the overall tale, though. His was a voice that reflected the adhesion to the regime, the brainwashing and subsequent blind adoration to the fuhrer Germans had. It gave the novel depth and showed that, in the end, on that ship, they were all victims.
I loved all the other voices, even the Poet's and Klaus's (even though they didn't get to have their own chapters). Their presence made the story poetic (redundant, but I lack the right words) and full-bodied. It pained me so much to see the Poet sink.
I also loved Emilia's innocence and selflessness. I kept hoping till the very end that she would be reunited with her baby and the group. She was the one keeping them together. Joana was my favourite. And Florian's words to Emilia and her baby will forever be etched in my memory: "She is you. She is your mother. She is your father. She is Poland." I cry now remembering it. It was so meaningful and so powerful.
The ending caught me off-guard. I kept looking at the percentage of the book I was at and it looked far from the ending, but it ended nonetheless. It was quite puzzling to see it end on a letter, to have the story cut so abruptly and jump to a letter written by someone I didn't know, hinting at many many things that were left unsaid for me to guess. My favourite part about happy endings is knowing how they got to be there and I felt robbed of that, but I guess my imagination can fill in the gaps. I can almost see Florian wet and shivering on the rescue boat, adopting Joana's name, claiming himself part of her family, the children between them; both arriving to safety hand in hand; helping each other through the nightmares and night terrors; raising the children and honoring their origins, their parents, their land. I loved (and had to read twice) how the letter so respectfully and so lovingly talks about Emilia. That's something else that brings tears to my eyes again.
Now, about the remaining almost 20% of the book after its ending. After the story ends, the author includes the bibliography she consulted to carry out her investigation; she also acknowledges all the survivors and the people she talked to to get her story straight, and she even includes interviews with the divers that got the opportunity to visit the underwater remains of the sunken ship, as well as the sketch one of them did of the ship laying almost on its side at the bottom of the sea. Their words talk about the tragedy, the loss of many innocent lives, how all of them were relieved to get on a ship that would take them to safety after a grueling walk of days on end, only to be now resting underwater.
Historic fiction is one of my favourite genres to read, and I really appreciate and admire when authors actually go to great lengths to research the topic they're covering so as to honor and make justice to the victims, their history, their losses, and their suffering.
The fact that this tale of violence and loss is still unknown to the world baffles me. The sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff was a tragedy bigger than the Titanic in many aspects, but it was left behind in history. I feel like this novel makes it, though very slightly, a bit better.
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