This a perfect setting for a YA novel because students are often behind revolutions, including the one in Romania. Faced imprisonment, torture, and even death if they broke laws or openly disagreed with the government.Experienced dire food and energy shortages.Couldn’t speak freely to friends and family because one in ten citizens were informers for the secret police.Couldn’t speak freely in their own homes because they were bugged.Couldn’t travel freely out of the country.They maintained tight control of Romanian citizens through a combination of fear and a cult of personality. He and his wife, Elena, ruled Romania from the mid-60s until 1989, when they were both executed on Christmas day.

This book will make a great stocking stuffer for my daughters!Ī quick review of life in Romania under the communist dictator, Nicolae Ceaușescu. November’s challenge was to read a young adult (YA) novel and then pass it along to a young person to enjoy. I read I Must Betray You as part of the 2022 Thoughtful Reading Challenge. (This in no way affects the honesty of my reviews!) All commissions will be donated to the ALS Association. As an Amazon Associate I earn a small commission, at no additional cost to you, from qualifying purchases. This post may contain Amazon Affiliate links. It shines a bright light on a topic that isn’t well-known to young people, and I highly recommend it as an account of what true oppression looks like. I Must Betray You is a gripping, historical young adult novel about a teenage boy’s struggle for freedom in the final days of Romania’s oppressive communist regime.

I must betray you ruta sepetys