“With each brick, my hopes faded until nothing was left. If there had ever been a chance of Dominic and my father returning, then the wall took that too. My schoolteacher taught us a new song that thanked our leaders for building a wall to keep the fascists out. I muted my glares and only mouthed the words when my teacher was looking - I couldn't bear to sing the lies.”
Review
Fast forward a couple months, I got the notification that the book was ready for me on Overdrive. (I love Overdrive so much!)
One thing I'd like to note is there is exactly zero romantic anything anywhere in these pages. (Not including the bit about the main character's parents being married. I give that a pass.) I've read so many of it lately, that I was just sick of it. So, this was a pleasant relief. Instead, it focused on the struggles of a teenager, Gerta, whose family was split in half because of the Berlin Wall. Her father and one of her brothers were on the west, while she was stuck in the east with her mother and eldest brother.
I recognize this book is perhaps the one of fluffiest recounts from this time period that I could have read, but it still had a good deal of drama going on. I was never sure which other characters, outside of Gerta's family, were trustworthy. That kept up during the duration of the book, so I never knew when even a minor offense would be reported to the authorities. So, I found myself holding on to the edge of my seat while waiting to hear what would happen next.
I felt this was a great introduction read to this topic, and it is especially good for younger teenagers. I enjoyed it and I am interested in seeing more from this author.