Ruta Sepetys hadn’t known the depths of 1989 Romania, the maniacal dynasty of dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu and the brave young Romanians who fought for their freedom. Being the daughter of a victim of communism, Ruta thought she knew about post-war communist systems and their history. On tour in Romania with her publisher promoting her first novel Between Shades of Gray Ruta had a rude awakening. Their translator was searching for listening devices. She was checking the ashtray on the outside table they were sitting at in case the ‘blue-eyed boys’ were listening. That’s when Ruta learned about the more than 20 million Romanians who had suffered during Ceaușescu’s evil regime.
