Ruta Sepetys

Ruta Sepetys (also known as Rūta

Šepetys; born November 19, 1967) is a
Lithuanian-American writer of historical
fiction. As an author, she is a #1 New
York Times bestseller, international
bestseller, and winner of the Carnegie
Medal.[1]
 Rūta Šepetys

Sepetys (2016 at the international literature

festival berlin)
Born Ruta Sepetys
November 19, 1967
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Occupation Writer
Nationality American
Notable works Between Shades of
Gray
Out of the Easy
Salt to the Sea

Website

rutasepetys.com
She is a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio
Fellow and the first American writer of
young adult literature to speak at the
European Parliament.[2] Her work is
published in over fifty countries and thirty
languages and is currently in
development for two films.

Biography
Born in Detroit, Sepetys is the daughter
of a Lithuanian refugee. She earned a
B.S. in International Finance from
Hillsdale College. While overseas, she
studied at the Centre d’études
Européennes in Toulon, France and at the
ICN Graduate Business School in Nancy,
France.[3]

Following graduation Sepetys moved to

Los Angeles. In 1994, she launched
Sepetys Entertainment Group, Inc., an
entertainment management firm
representing Grammy-award-winning
guitarist Steve Vai, multi-platinum
songwriter Desmond Child, Orange
County modern rockers Lit, and Emmy-
nominated film composer Niels Bye
Nielsen.

In 2002, Sepetys was featured in Rolling

Stone magazine's "Women in Rock"
special issue as a woman driven to make
a difference. Sepetys is on the Board of
Advisors for the Mike Curb College of
Entertainment and Music Business at
Belmont University and is also a director
of the Make a Noise Foundation, a
national non-profit that raises money for
music education. Sepetys published her
first novel in 2011 and currently resides
in Nashville, Tennessee. She has been
described as a "seeker of lost stories"
who hopes to give voice to those who
weren't able to tell their story.[4]

Between Shades of Gray

Her first novel, Between Shades of Gray,
about the Genocide of Baltic people after
the Soviet occupation in 1941, was
critically acclaimed[5] and translated into
over 30 different languages.[6][7]

The book is considered a roman à clef,

with fictional characters wrapped around
actual events and experiences. Ruta
states that the novel represents the
"extreme suffering and tremendous
hope" displayed by the people of the
Baltics.[8][8]

In March 2013, Ruta became the first

American author of young adult literature
to give a presentation at European
Parliament. Her discussion with MEPs in
Brussels centered on the novel, the
history of totalitarianism in the Baltics,
and the importance of historical fiction.[9]
The novel is currently in development as
a film, Ashes in the Snow.

Sepetys is a writer of historical fiction.

Although Between Shades of Gray was
initially written for children and young
adults, the book has been widely read by
many worldwide and is considered a
book for all ages.[10]

Out of the Easy

Out of the Easy is Sepetys' second
published novel. It was released on
February 12, 2013[11] and features Josie
Moraine, a young woman in the 1950s
French Quarter of New Orleans who
struggles to escape her family and
become the author of her own destiny.
The story explores themes of feminism
in historical context and post-war
America. The novel became a New York
Times bestseller and was chosen as an
Editor’s Choice in The New York Times on
February 15, 2013.[12]

Salt to the Sea

Sepetys's latest novel, Salt to the Sea ,
was published on February 2, 2016, and
chronicles the 1945 refugee evacuation
from East Prussia and the MV Wilhelm
Gustloff disaster.[13]

The sinking of the MV Wilhelm Gustloff is

the single largest maritime disaster in
history yet, to many, the story remains
unknown. In their starred review,
Publishers Weekly said, "Sepetys delivers
another knockout historical novel...she
excels in shining light on lost chapters of
history and this visceral novel proves a
memorable testament to strength and
resilience in the face of war and cruelty."
[14]The New York Times added this in their
review of Salt to the Sea—"Ruta Sepetys
acts as champion of the interstitial
people so often ignored—whole
populations lost in the cracks of
history."[15] In June, 2017, Salt to the Sea
was awarded The Carnegie Medal for
stimulating empathy and solidarity.[16]
Adaptations
Between Shades of Gray has been
released in an unabridged audiobook by
Penguin Audio, narrated by Emily Klein;
and has been translated into 30
languages and sold in as many
countries.

It has also been adapted for film by Ben

York Jones, directed by Marius A.
Markevicius and produced by Chris Coen,
Marius A. Markevicius, Žilvinas Naujokas,
and Ruta Sepetys. The film is titled Ashes
in the Snow and stars Bel Powley, Martin
Wallström, and Lisa Loven Kongsli. It is
set to release in Lithuania in October
2018, and will release in the US in early
2019.[17] [18]

Out of the Easy has been released in an

unabridged audiobook by Listening
Library and is narrated by Lauren
Fortgang.

Salt to the Sea has been released in an

unabridged audiobook by Listening
Library and is narrated by Jorjeana Marie,
Will Damron, Cassandra Morris, and
Michael Crouch.

In 2017, Salt to the Sea was optioned by

Universal Pictures for film to be produced
by Lorenzo Di Bonaventura. The
Screenplay was written by Scott
Neustadter and Michael H. Weber whose
credits include “500 Days of Summer,”
“The Fault in Our Stars,” “Our Souls at
Night,” and “The Disaster Artist”.[19]

Recognition
The Carnegie Medal

On June 19, 2017, Ruta Sepetys was

awarded The Carnegie Medal (literary
award) in a ceremony at the Royal
Institute of British Architects in London.
Sepetys, who was previously shortlisted
for The Carnegie Medal in 2012 for her
novel Between Shades of Gray,
commented: "As a writer, I am drawn to
underrepresented stories and history in
hiding. History divided us, but through
reading we are united in story, study and
remembrance. That is the power of
books."[16]

Cross of the Knight

On June 6, 2013, Sepetys was awarded

the Knight's Cross of the Order for Merits
to Lithuania. The honor of Knight was
bestowed by the President of Lithuania in
a formal ceremony at the Presidential
Palace in Vilnius. Sepetys was decorated
for her contributions to education and
culture in conjunction with her global
efforts to share the history of
totalitarianism in the Baltics.[20]

The Rockefeller Foundation

In 2015, Sepetys was awarded the

Rockefeller Foundation's prestigious
Bellagio Center residency in Lake Como,
Italy. As a Rockefeller Bellagio fellow,
Sepetys was invited to spend a month at
the Foundation's Bellagio Center
interacting with other international
resident thought leaders, policy makers,
artists, and practitioners who share in the
Foundation’s pioneering mission to
"promote the well-being of humanity."[21]
Works
Books
Between Shades of Gray (2011)
ISBN 978-0-399-25412-3
Out of the Easy (2013) ISBN 978-0-399-
25692-9
Salt to the Sea (2016) ISBN 978-
0399160301
Media articles and essays
Sepetys, Ruta (November 26, 2012).
"Finding My Family's Story Through
Historical Fiction" . Huffington Post.
Retrieved 2014-02-23.
Radio essays
Sepetys, Ruta (September 23, 2011).
"In Wordless Imagery, An Immigrant's
 Timeless Tale" . All Things Considered.
NPR. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
Sepetys, Ruta (May 17, 2012). "Two
Gray Titles, One Sexy Mix-Up" . All
Things Considered. NPR. Retrieved
27 July 2012.

References
1. "Carnegie Medal (literary award)" .
September 23, 2017. Retrieved October 4,
2017 – via Wikipedia.
2. "On the Books: Guardians of the
Galaxy's Drax the Destroyer gets his own
comic book" . April 27, 2015. Retrieved
October 4, 2017.
3. "Ruta Sepetys profile" . Archived from
the original on September 26, 2011.
Retrieved October 5, 2011.
4. Alexandra Alter, "An Unlikely Story for
Teens" . The Wall Street Journal;
accessed January 14, 2018.
5. Park, Linda Sue (April 8, 2011). "A
Teenager's View of the Gulag" . The New
York Times. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
6. "The official website of author Ruta E.
Sepetys" . Rutasepetys.com. Archived
from the original on 2012-04-25.
Retrieved 2014-02-23.
7. MacPherson, Karen (June 4, 2011).
" 'Between Shades of Gray' reveals horror
and hope" . Seattle Times. Retrieved
September 3, 2011.
8. "Official Book Website for Between
Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys" .
Betweenshadesofgray.com. Retrieved
2014-02-23.
9. Brus, Mitja. "The week on the EP
Library's blog: Ruta Sepetys" .
Libraryeuroparl.wordpress.com. Archived
from the original on 2013-06-26.
Retrieved 2014-02-23.
10. "Between Shades of Gray by Ruta
Sepetys - review" . The Guardian. London,
UK. 2011-05-04. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
11. "Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys" .
PenguinRandomHouse.com. Retrieved
October 4, 2017.
12. "Editors' Choice" . The New York
Times. 2013-02-15. Retrieved 2014-02-23.
13. "Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys" .
penguinrandomhouse.com. Retrieved
October 4, 2017.
14. "Children's Book Review: Salt to the
Sea by Ruta Sepetys. Philomel, $18.99
(400p) ISBN 978-0-399-16030-1" .
Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 4 October
2017.
15. Anderson, M. T. (12 February 2016).
" 'Salt to the Sea,' by Ruta Sepetys" . The
New York Times. Retrieved 4 October
2017.
16. "The CILIP Carnegie and Kate
Greenaway Awards" .
www.carnegiegreenaway.org.uk. Retrieved
4 October 2017.
17. IMDB page for Ashes in the Snow
18. Tauras Films
19. Article from Deadline "Universal Wins
‘Salt To The Sea’ Auction: Neustadter &
Weber To Write" on May 25, 2018
20. "Author Ruta Sepetys Awarded
Lithuania's 'Cross of the Knight' for
Contributions in Education & Culture" .
Archived from the original on August 3,
2013. Retrieved July 25, 2013.
21. "The Bellagio Center - The Rockefeller
Foundation" . Retrieved October 4, 2017.

External links
 Official website

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Ruta_Sepetys&oldid=850571691"

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