BREAKING STALIN'S NOSE

In the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, ten-year-old Sasha idolizes his father, a devoted Communist and looks forward to the day he can join the Young Pioneers. Then police take his father away, the neighbors immediately possess his room in the communal apartment, and his aunt can’t take him in because her husband fears reprisals. In fact, no one trusts anyone in this stark time, and Sasha, now homeless, is terrified of what will happen when his teacher and classmates find out about his father’s arrest. Gradually, he has to re-evaluate his own perceptions, values, and beliefs. This is an unusual topic for grade school, but a lesson about blind belief still relevant. The novel is a quick and chilling read for an older audience than the cover and layout suggests. Ten to Fourteen. Annette Klause