Shannon's Library

LET’S GET EXCITED ABOUT THIS BOOK!

Cristian Florescu is a teenage boy living in Romania in 1989. He knows firsthand what living under a communist regime feels like. When he is blackmailed by the secret police to become an informer, his already difficult life becomes much more complicated. With the revolution brewing, Cristian will risk everything for a chance at freedom. Ruta Sepetys is a master at young adult historical fiction. The timeliness of this novel is extraordinary. I encourage all of us with teenagers to read this book with them and have an honest discussion about the cost of freedom. Continue reading below for my full review of this novel!

Shannon’s Rating — PG-13

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LET’S TALK ABOUT THIS BOOK!

When I was young, my sister and I were obsessed with gymnastics. I wasn’t amazing at it or anything, but I loved it with all of my heart. I vividly remember as an 11-year-old watching Mary Lou Retton win the All-Around gold medal at the 1984 Olympics. I recently re-watched her floor routine and, weirdly enough, I think I could have still recreated it with her. That’s how many times my sister and I practiced it on our lawn! I even had Mary Lou’s haircut. That’s how big of a fan I was!

As a young gymnast, I was also a big Nadia Comaneci fan. At the gym, we would often study her record-breaking, perfect 10 bar routine from the 1976 Olympics.

Nadia was just 14 years old when she rose to fame as the best gymnast in the world. She set the stage for Romanian gymnastic domination for years to follow. Mary Lou Retton became an American hero because, for the first time, someone from our country was able to beat the Romanian gymnasts!

I was 16 years old when Nadia Comaneci defected from her homeland, Romania, in 1989. I remember talking about it with my mom and, being a naive American teenager, I couldn’t fathom why someone would want to escape from their own country.

Nadia recently gave an interview about her defection. She said,

“At that time, just before the revolution, leaving meant you were gone. You couldn’t go back. When I think back to that moment it’s hard because I thought I was never going to see my family again. My brother supported me. He said, ‘ You go and find a life.’”

So, why all of this gymnastics reminiscing from me? Because 1989 Romania is the setting for the novel, “I Must Betray You,” by Ruta Sepetys. (Nadia Comaneci’s defection is even mentioned in the story! Hence, the reminiscing…)

I read this book a few weeks ago, right when Russia was beginning its assault on Ukraine. I found it very timely to be reading about a communist regime towards the end of the Soviet Union. It brought such an interesting and sobering perspective into what’s taking place in Eastern Europe right now.

“I Must Betray You” is the story of Cristian Florescu, a teenage boy living in Romania in 1989. He has spent his life in poverty, restrictions, surveillance and sadness. He yearns for the freedoms he hears about through smuggled American magazines and videos. When he is forced to become an informant on one of his friends, his resolve to fight for freedom intensifies. Cristian begins writing his rebellious thoughts in a notebook, knowing full well this is a punishable offense by the law. One of his poems describes the overwhelming isolation and fear living under the dictatorship of Nicolae Ceausescu brings…

Do you see me?

Squinting beneath the half-light,

Searching for a key to

the locked door of the world

Lost within my own shadow

Amidst an empire of fear.

I was a teenager when the countries of Eastern Europe, including Romania, broke free from the Soviet Union. Although it was in the news and we talked about it at school, I don’t think it really sunk in what was happening. I have a teenage daughter right now who is struggling to understand what is happening in Ukraine. While no one can fully comprehend Putin’s motivations, this book can help explain what the Ukrainians are fighting for. This is one of the reasons I love historical fiction so much. Cristian in, “I Must Betray You,” isn’t a real person, but his experiences mirror thousands of Romanians living under communism in the late 1980’s. I know I often take the freedoms we have in this country for granted. I’m so glad I was able to read this book and get a small glimpse of what life without those freedoms would entail. I highly recommend all of us to read this book with the older children and teenagers in our lives and have some meaningful discussions about the cost of freedom and why it is worth defending. Thank you, Ruta Sepetys, for writing this story which can facilitate these discussions!