by Carolyn Newton (Author)
How can a girl keep hope amid unimaginable suffering?
Winter 1945. The Soviet army is sweeping into East Prussia, and they have their sights set on punishing Germans for the Nazis' reign of terror.
Thirteen-year-old Giti and her younger brother, Otto, live with their mother and grandmother. When soldiers arrive and brutally attack the two adult women, killing their grandmother, the farm is set ablaze, and the children, along with their severely wounded mother, are loaded into a crowded train bound for the Soviet Union.
When their mother tragically dies on the train, the two children are thrust into a dark world, orphaned and terrified. Giti is determined to escape, but her plan goes horribly wrong. While she manages to jump from the train, Otto is trapped and is carried far away, separating him from his sister.
Wandering into the forest, scared and alone, a traumatised and mute Giti is rescued by a disabled veteran who is hiding in the woods.
The two strike up an unlikely bond and manage to survive, until Russian soldiers arrive...
As Giti fights for her life, she is determined to be reunited with her brother. But how long will she have to wait, and will the reunion be as happy as she envisaged?