by Ruta Sepetys
Historial Fiction at its finest. The setting is recent history in Romania, specifically 1989. I could relate because I lived through this time period without even realizing that this was going on and had a strong impact on people's lives. I was awoken to my own naivety of the time. The lessons learned here were priceless, both for the past and the future. This story is considered YA (Young Adult) but I didn't even realize it until I was finished with it. Not trite or youthful in any way.