Nina Lugovskaya (1918–1993)

Nina grew up during a difficult in Russia. Stalin was ruler and her father was even exiled for parts of her childhood. Many people have compared her to Anne Frank--both kept diaries during times of turmoil and danger. What makes Nina's different is that hers was able to include school adventures, friend drama, and normal day-to-day activities. It adds another layer to the trouble going on around her. I think students will enjoy reading about another student who is going to school and dealing with siblings, while being surrounded by pure craziness.… (más)

Synopsis: Tagged as the Soviet equivalent to Anne Frank's diary, this is the diary of Nina Lugovskaya, a young girl who kept a diary from 1932 through to 1937 when her diary was found by Stalin's secret police who ransacked Nina's home.
My Opinion: I thought the title was a bit ironic; throughout the majority of the book Nina is suffering from depression and has constant suicidal thoughts - even attempting it twice.
In general, the book is quite dull - a constant drone of boys, hating and skipping school, hating her life and the odd party or political event. Because of this, I did not particularly enjoy this book. However, the most interesting thing to me is the subtlety of the historical backdrop - from a brief view, Nina seems like the typical adolescent in modern times. However, the way she mentions hunger, an informer in her group of friends and, most shockingly, the abruptness of her diary being found and her family facing exile (all of these only occurring once or twice), shows that times were quite different. A dull, yet horrifying read.… (más)