The Other Side of Freedom discussion

The first book I read was a historical fiction called, The Other Side of Freedom by Cynthia T. Toney. I read this book within a day only because I couldn’t wait to see what would happen to Salvatore Scaviano and his family. This book was not only suspenseful, but it was also heartbreaking. As I continued to read, the feeling of helplessness for the Scaviano family was intense. The family was working day by day to make it through to the next on their farm. Their lives were ordinary until three intimidating looking men showed up on their doorstep. That is when their lives went from ordinary to out of the ordinary. The thought of your family being forced to partake with an affiliated Italian mob and their crimes is gut wrenching. Salvatore Scaviano, who is only thirteen in this book is a young boy who has no doubt, a whole lot of innocence. However, Sal’s innocence is quickly stripped away from him when he witnesses murder and other unlawful acts.
The most suspenseful part of the book to me was, the reality of the situation for the Scavianos. A family was being torn apart and disintegrating within a matter of one incident… an incident they were forced to be apart of if they wanted to live. But who would want to live in fear of the mob coming for them afterwards? Either way, this is not the way to live, secrets, betrayal, murder.
After the murder of the family friend, Sal struggles to do the right thing. Is the right thing for Sal to do is go to the police and incriminate his father and the rest of his family? Or is keeping this heavy burden of a secret the right thing to do? Sal struggles and can’t decide what to do in order to save his family.
In the midst of all of this, Sal manages to find companionship with a girl his age, Antonina. Their relationship adds almost a sense of hope and uplift to the story because of the pureness. The only time Sal was able to get his mind off of his deranged life was when he was with his dear friend, Antonina. Instead of focusing on his crazy situation, Sal was focused on her beauty whenever he was with her.



Overall, this book was a great read!