Meredith Sheridan
asked
Ruta Sepetys:
AHHH! Salt to the Sea was so good and I'm looking forward to reading Between Shades of Gray! Which character in Salt to the Sea was the hardest research/write? Love your book(s) and I hopefully you can come to Washington soon! :)
Ruta Sepetys
Hi Meredith!
In Salt to the Sea, my favorite character to write was the shoe poet :) The hardest was probably Alfred. In order to create the character of Alfred, I studied Adolf Hitler as a youth. Hitler wrote lengthy letters to a girl but never mailed them, he had a difficult relationship with his father. Hitler also had a fascination with hands so I included that via a manifestation on Alfred's hands.
For me, Alfred was also a study of visibility. He was rejected and invisible for much of his youth, but when Alfred put on a uniform he suddenly became/felt visible (even if only in his own mind) and that visibility then mutated into a sense of power. Alfred felt that he was superior and entitled to possess beautiful, innocent things - like the butterflies pinned to his closet wall - and Hannelore.
Thanks for your question!
In Salt to the Sea, my favorite character to write was the shoe poet :) The hardest was probably Alfred. In order to create the character of Alfred, I studied Adolf Hitler as a youth. Hitler wrote lengthy letters to a girl but never mailed them, he had a difficult relationship with his father. Hitler also had a fascination with hands so I included that via a manifestation on Alfred's hands.
For me, Alfred was also a study of visibility. He was rejected and invisible for much of his youth, but when Alfred put on a uniform he suddenly became/felt visible (even if only in his own mind) and that visibility then mutated into a sense of power. Alfred felt that he was superior and entitled to possess beautiful, innocent things - like the butterflies pinned to his closet wall - and Hannelore.
Thanks for your question!
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Anne
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Ruta Sepetys:
I was greatly enthralled by your book "Between Shades of Grey". It's a very rare occurrence ; but, i wished the pages would go on and on, i wished the story would me through Lina's life, through her survival and recovery-- that's how tethered to her i was.Thank you for such an inspiring book. Question--Is "Between Shades of Grey" based off of real experiences? And if so, might i ask whose?
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I know that the displaced Lithuanians suffered horribly under the Soviets but what I found most horrifying about your novel was that the victims upon returning home were still in prison. How long was it in the Baltic Countries before people could communicate with each other about the inhumanity they had suffered. When did the truth come out, verbally, not in buried writings and art?
Nicole Alycia
asked
Ruta Sepetys:
Hi! First I want to say you have become one of my favorite authors over the last year, all three of your books have been fantastic! Question: Are you currently working on a new book and if so, can you hit at what it might be about? Maybe just a time period reference? I'm hoping you'll write another book like Out of the Easy! It was such an interesting read with such a fantastic main character!
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