In terms of a message, I see this as a love story. As I was writing the book I often asked myself, “Who survives this kind of thing? How in the world did anyone survive?” But all of the survivors had one thing in common, and that was love. They survived through love. Whether it was love of country, love for one another, or love of God, they chose to focus on that love, and it kept many people alive. Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia may be small countries, but they’ve taught the world large lessons about love and freedom through peaceful endurance and silence instead of violence.
