Welcome to my stop on the Broken Stone blog tour! I’ve got two reviews here, one for the first book –Red Stone– and the other for the starring book. I’m really excited to share with you these books today, as they are fantastic and don’t get enough attention at all. They’re based off the childhood of Goldstone’s mother, and they give an insight into Stalin-era Soviet Union, so I felt like I was getting an education while reading! In fact, reading this story had a similar effect on me as reading The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank [review here].
Scroll down for reviews of each book in the series so far, as well as a map of key places and a giveaway! Also look out for links to Wikipedia articles about various events. 😉
Red Stone
Red Stone
Brought into the world by: Gabriele Goldstone Series: Red Stone #1
Published by Rebelight Publishing Inc. on June 6th 2015
ISBN: 0993939082
Genres: Middle Grade, Historical Fiction
Pages: 164
Format: Kindle
Source: Chapter by Chapter
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Find out more: Goodreads
Buy here: Amazon USKatya knows all about Stalin’s big plans; she learned of them in school. But those plans mean little to her until the secret police arrest Papa and seize their family farm. With Mama and her younger siblings, Katya is shoved into a crowded train headed for a forced labour camp in Siberia. Torn from everything she has ever known, Katya faces cold and hunger, and the ever-present threat of lost hope. As she clings to a single red stone from the fields of her homeland, she questions life. Where is Papa? Will she ever see him again? And what will become of Katya’s family?
Inspired by a true story, Red Stone explores the trauma and heart-break suffered by many families in the Soviet Union during the 1930s when Stalin seized individual property and villainized property owners as kulaks.
Review
Red Stone was a surprise for me. From the synopsis, I knew a bit about what I was going to read, but I didn’t think I get as sucked into the story as I did.
The story is narrated by Katya, initially 10 at the start of the book and just turned 12 at the end. Katya is the eldest daughter of a farmer in Federofka, Soviet Union (now part of Ukraine). While her family is not wealthy, they own the land they work, and they have enough to eat and then some to sell. In 1930, things change for the family, and Katya is sent off with her mother and siblings to Yaya, Siberia.
That’s the trouble with everything. You never know what will happen next. You can plan and hope and do all things right, and then a storm comes along.
It’s clear Goldstone wanted to keep the story as historically accurate as possible. She used the place names that were in existence at the time, as well as the spellings. Real forced labour projects are also mentioned, such as the White Sea Canal project. In this first book, we see the implementation of Stalin’s first Five-Year Plan. This included banning of religion, liquidisation of privately owned farmland and arrests of all “first-class kulaks” (the owners of farmland).
“Effective immediately, all students will be expected to attend school seven days a week, including Sundays. No exceptions. The Soviet Union must educate its young to be productive citizens of its future. Education will create a worker’s paradise here on earth. Religion is for the weak. The opium of the people.“
Goldstone did a fantastic job with the first person perspective, especially that of a child. Katya came to life, toeing the line between still being a child and having to grow up and be the big sister. I also felt her love for her father and other members of her family, as well as her innocence. That childhood naivety shines through, especially at the beginning, and she must quickly learn that people are not always how they seem – sometimes the ones you think you can trust will ruin you, while others that seem sinister might actually be the ones to help you.
The idea that Natasha once had a mother startles me. I’ve never thought of Natasha as a person. She’s always been just our milkmaid.
Admittedly, I didn’t cry while reading, even though there were many incredibly tragic moments. Red Stone had more of a slow descent into depression than sudden devastating moments. I found, when the peaks of sadness hit, I was already at a level of despondency that I could only sigh and keep going, much like Katya and her family.
The sadness is so loud I must cover my ears to shut out the wails.
The story ends with a sliver of hope, and I couldn’t wait to read the next book…and I did just that!
Broken Stone
Broken Stone
Brought into the world by: Gabriele Goldstone Series: Red Stone #2
Published by Rebelight Publishing Inc. on November 17th 2015
ISBN: 0994839928
Genres: Middle Grade, Historical Fiction
Pages: 164
Format: Kindle
Source: Chapter by Chapter
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Find out more: Goodreads
Buy here: Amazon UK | Amazon USMama is dead, Baby Emil is dead and Stalin’s new rules are breaking up the family. Papa must stay behind and hide as 12-year-old Katya and her three younger siblings find their way to freedom in East Prussia. With Mama’s sister, Aunt Helena, they board a train and flee for a new home with an aunt and uncle they’ve never met—relatives who don’t want them.
But when they reach the border, Soldiers won’t let Aunt Helena cross. That forces Katya to take responsibility for her siblings. What will life hold for Katya, her two sisters and her brother when they arrive in East Prussia? How long before Papa can rescue them?
Review
Broken Stone picks up a few days after Red Stone, with Katya and her siblings safe with their aunt, Helena. Katya sees the start of the Collective way of life, with ration books and food collection in town. However, given her family’s German descent, it is decided that –along with Helena– the children must leave Russia as soon as possible. When the opportunity arises, they board a train to East Prussia and their paternal uncle’s farm.
Helena is detained at the border, and the children must continue on their own. On arrival, they are warmly welcomed by their uncle…but no one else. Elfriede and Anni, Katya’s East Prussian aunt and cousin, give Cinderella’s stepmom and stepsisters a run for their money. While Katya’s brother, Albert, is taken in like a son by his uncle and the younger girls are ‘adopted’ by another distant aunt thanks to their youth, 12-year-old Katya becomes Elfriede’s personal slave. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I can tell you now that I wanted to throttle that stupid woman!!!
Why are people so hard to figure out? And why do even bad people have something good in them?
Where this book really shone was, again, the insight it gave into the lives of people at the time. Ranging from small details to the big events, I found myself googling various things throughout. For example, a statue from the zoo in what is now Kaliningrad is mentioned as missing, and sure enough, there was a missing statue built by Walter Rosenberg between 1913 and 1990! There was also talk of the terrible famine in Russia, the consequence of communist Collectives gone wrong. I am ashamed to say I didn’t even know there was a famine there at the time.
“But you see, Katya, books can change the world. You have proof. A book changed your world. […] Reading will help you to understand the world. Read many books, but don’t believe everything they say. Books can be dangerous. They can lie, just like people.”
East Prussia was considered part of Germany, and in 1932, you may remember what was happening there at the time. The rise of Hitler! It was interesting to read about the Germans referring to Hitler as a promising new leader, there to do things like build roads and make Germany a better place. We know now what a truly horrible person he was, but it was a great mental exercise to consider what people might have thought of him during his initial rise to power.
“Maybe this new man, Hitler, maybe he’ll make things better for us.”
I think, overall, I might have preferred Red Stone to Broken Stone, but not by much. There seemed to be quicker pacing in the first book, as well as a defined climax to the story, while Broken Stone was more level and a little drawn out. It certainly captured the reality of Katya’s life, filled with tedious, hard labour. I wish there was just a little bit more of a bang at the end to really round things out. That being said, I’m still very eager to read what happens next!
The Good and the Bad
The Good
- I felt like I learned quite a bit.
- The people and places were very distinct to me.
- Katya’s narration seemed age-appropriate.
- I think this would be a great book for teens aged 12-15 to read to give them a different perspective of the world and teach them a bit of history without simply memorising dates and facts!
The Bad
- I never felt truly terrified or scared.
- I was a little dissatisfied with the end of Broken Stone.
Great reviews Dani! Now I’m kind of disappointed I didn’t offer to review them but time constraints! These seem like really great books though!
They were actually relatively quick reads at under 200 pages each, so you could have done them both in an afternoon.