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I Must Betray You

by Ruta Sepetys

When 17-year-old Cristian Florescu is called to his school office and confronted by a member of the Romanian secret police, the Securitate officer tells Cristian that he and his family won’t be punished for the illegal American dollar Cristian possesses if he’s willing to become an informer. Cristian hates himself for agreeing to spy on the 17-year-old son of the American diplomat his mother works for, but the Securitate officer has promised much-needed medicine for Bunu, Cristian’s beloved grandfather, who has leukemia. Wise, funny Bunu is the most important person in Cristian’s life: He shares his opinions about the government even though the family knows their cramped apartment in Bucharest is bugged, like those of all their neighbors. Having grown up under the brutal Ceauşescu regime, Cristian knows there are spies and informers everywhere; now he is one of them. But Cristian, who writes his thoughts and dreams in a secret journal he hides in the closet where he sleeps, thinks he can outwit the Securitate, even as he begins to wonder if there are greater threats than he realized right within his home. Interspersed with the staccato-paced, first-person, present-tense narrative are top secret State Security reports, giving readers insight into the danger Cristian is in. This tense, riveting thriller captures life in Bucharest in the weeks leading up to the 1989 uprising that ousted Ceauşescu from office, illuminating the physical and psychological cruelty of his oppressive regime and the courage of citizens demanding freedom. ©2022 Cooperative Children’s Book Center

CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 12 and older
Age Range: Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13) Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Format: Novel
Subjects: 20th Century Activism and Resistance Families Oppression Perspective/Point of View Politics and Political Systems Romanians and Romanian Americans Spies and Intrigue Trust Truth and Lies World History

Publishers: Penguin Random House, Philomel
Publish Year: 2022
Pages: 319
ISBN: 9781984836038
CCBC Location: Fiction, Sepetys

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