Broken Stone

by Gabriele Goldstone

Mama is dead, Baby Emil is dead and Stalin’s new rules are breaking up the family. Papa must stay behind and hide as 12-year-old Katya and her three younger siblings find their way to freedom in East Prussia. With Mama’s sister, Aunt Helena, they board a train and flee for a new home with an aunt and uncle they’ve never met—relatives who don’t want them. But when they reach the border, soldiers won’t let Aunt Helena cross. That forces Katya to take responsibility for her siblings. What will life hold for Katya, her two sisters and her brother when they arrive in East Prussia? How long before Papa can rescue them?

Gabriele Goldstone inherited scattered bits of her mother’s memories, shadowed by the oppression of both Stalin and Hitler. She shaped them into the life of the fictional character Katya Halter. Gabriele travelled to Ukraine and searched through former KGB files to find missing pieces—along with the red stone that symbolizes Katya’s home. Gabriele lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

177 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 24, 2015

Reviews

[Dani (Dani Reviews Things) · Rating 3 out of 5]

See this review in its natural environment, Dani Reviews Things.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a review. This does not affect my review.

Broken Stone picks up a few days after Red Stone, with Katya and her siblings safe with their aunt, Helena. Katya sees the start of the Collective way of life, with ration books and food collection in town. However, given her family's German descent, it is decided that –along with Helena– the children must leave Russia as soon as possible. When the opportunity arises, they board a train to East Prussia and their paternal uncle's farm.

Helena is detained at the border, and the children must continue on their own. On arrival, they are warmly welcomed by their uncle...but no one else. Elfriede and Anni, Katya's East Prussian aunt and cousin, give Cinderella's stepmom and stepsisters a run for their money. While Katya's brother, Albert, is taken in like a son by his uncle and the younger girls are 'adopted' by another distant aunt thanks to their youth, 12-year-old Katya becomes Elfriede's personal slave. I don't want to spoil anything, but I can tell you now that I wanted to throttle that stupid woman!!!

Why are people so hard to figure out? And why do even bad people have something good in them?

Where this book really shone was, again, the insight it gave into the lives of people at the time. Ranging from small details to the big events, I found myself googling various things throughout. For example, a statue from the zoo in what is now Kaliningrad is mentioned as missing, and sure enough, there was a missing statue built by Walter Rosenberg between 1913 and 1990! There was also talk of the terrible famine in Russia, the consequence of communist Collectives gone wrong. I am ashamed to say I didn't even know there was a famine there at the time.

"But you see, Katya, books can change the world. You have proof. A book changed your world. [...] Reading will help you to understand the world. Read many books, but don't believe everything they say. Books can be dangerous. They can lie, just like people."

East Prussia was considered part of Germany, and in 1932, you may remember what was happening there at the time. The rise of Hitler! It was interesting to read about the Germans referring to Hitler as a promising new leader, there to do things like build roads and make Germany a better place. We know now what a truly horrible person he was, but it was a great mental exercise to consider what people might have thought of him during his initial rise to power.

"Maybe this new man, Hitler, maybe he'll make things better for us."

I think, overall, I might have preferred Red Stone to Broken Stone, but not by much. There seemed to be quicker pacing in the first book, as well as a defined climax to the story, while Broken Stone was more level and a little drawn out. It certainly captured the reality of Katya's life, filled with tedious, hard labour. I wish there was just a little bit more of a bang at the end to really round things out. That being said, I'm still very eager to read what happens next!

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, this is the very first time I read a story like this. It is very refreshing for me. The book is well-written, and the author carefully pointed out every important detail. You can feel the deep connection the author had in the story. I think this is because this story is based on what her mother experienced in the past.

Broken Stone has well-developed characters. All of them played a vital role in the story. Each character was able to portray their roles perfectly and they had strong personalities, especially Katya, whom despite being at a young age, was brave enough to make sacrifices for the sake of her family.

Overall, this book is such a great read. It is filled with so much emotion. The readers will literally feel every pain, sadness and despair. It’s a very emotional story but inspiring and full of hope as well.

**Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.**