Between Shades of Gray Blog Tour Stop! - Character Interview and Giveaway!

Welcome! This is the first blog tour I have been a part of and it has been such a fun time working with the host, Hannah from the Book Vortex. Between Shades of Gray by: Ruta Sepetys will stay with me for years to come and I encourage every person out there to read it, even those of you who don't read will love it! With much thanks to Ruta, I am proud to have on the blog, Lina from Between Shades of Gray to answer some much anticipated questions plus a fabulous giveaway at the end of this post!


Interview with Lina:


Did you ever think about running away from the camp?

Lina: We all thought about it. We dreamed about it. We could imagine ourselves doing it. But we always came
to the same conclusion. It was selfish. If I ran from the camp I would have had to leave Jonas. He needed me. In the camp,
it was the  "we" not  "me" that was important.


What are the things that kept you going during the time you were captured?
Lina: The smallest things took on massive proportion. Seeing sparkles inside of a stone was enough to make me fight
for another day. It was proof that life had beauty to offer and that whisper of a promise was enough. And for me personally,
seeing Andrius's handwriting - where he made notes in my book - sustained me. It was part of him. It was as if I could feel him
by looking at his handwriting.


If you could go back and say one last thing to your father, what would it be?
Lina: I would tell him what I whispered so often through the lonely darkness in Siberia. "You are my hero."

How was life after you made it out of the NKVD's control?
Lina: When I returned from Siberia I was treated as a criminal. I wasn't allowed to attend university and I couldn't even rent an
apartment because I had a "criminal record." People who knew me prior to the deportation had to ignore me to protect themselves.
They couldn't be associated with me. But I understood and was grateful for what I did have - my life and the capacity to love.

There are people suffering from human trafficking, poverty, and imprisonment in the world today. What would you say to them if you had a chance?
Lina:  I probably wouldn't have to say anything. We would speak without uttering a word. We'd feel the wind blow through our hollow places onto one another. We'd recognize the absence in each other's face and the painful memories of what created that absence would make us shiver. Then perhaps I would nod, acknowledging
that the Soviets took my flag, took my language, took my country - but they would never take my spirit. And I would hope that she would nod back, proof that she too, was still fighting.

In what ways did the imprisonment change you?
Lina: I learned that suffering can be a spiritual teacher. And as difficult as it is, I learned that forgiveness is the solution to most problems. In the camps, when I let go of my anger I could literally feel strength returning to my body.

Between Shades of Gray is a bestseller and close to the hearts of thousands today. What is your reaction to the popularity and reality that your story brings to us?
Lina: I want people to know that this isn't just my story. Thousands of families from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia experienced the deportations. It's our story.
And together we're proof of the force of life, the power of love, and the miraculous nature of the human spirit. I don't want this part of history to be a secret so as
I mention in my letter in the book - please tell someone, share the story.

To learn more about Ruta, please visit rutasepetys.com. For more info about Between Shades of Gray, go to betweenshadesofgray.com




Now for the giveaway! There is a bookmark and bookplate, both signed by Ruta Sepetys up for grabs! To enter, simply use the Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway