AHHH! Salt to the Sea was so good and I'm looking forward to reading Between Shades of Gray! Which character in Salt to the Sea was the hardest research/write? Love your book(s) and I hopefully you can come to Washington soon! :)

Ruta Sepetys Hi Meredith!

In Salt to the Sea, my favorite character to write was the shoe poet :) The hardest was probably Alfred. In order to create the character of Alfred, I studied Adolf Hitler as a youth. Hitler wrote lengthy letters to a girl but never mailed them, he had a difficult relationship with his father. Hitler also had a fascination with hands so I included that via a manifestation on Alfred's hands.

For me, Alfred was also a study of visibility. He was rejected and invisible for much of his youth, but when Alfred put on a uniform he suddenly became/felt visible (even if only in his own mind) and that visibility then mutated into a sense of power. Alfred felt that he was superior and entitled to possess beautiful, innocent things - like the butterflies pinned to his closet wall - and Hannelore.

Thanks for your question!

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