Grey Is The Color Of Hope [Hardcover]

Irina Ratushinskaya (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 12, 1988

This is the true story of a young Russian poet's four-year ordeal in one of Russia's toughest prison camps; the narrative is interspersed with previously unpublished poems. It tells how, sustained by her deep personal faith, Irina was able, along with her fellow women prisoners, to build a life of courage and mutual support. Irina was released in 1986 following intense Western pressure. The author has also written "No, I am not afraid", and is considered a leading Russian poet.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

In 1983 Ratushinskaya was sentenced to seven years' hard labor in the grim Barashevo "strict regime" camp and five years' internal exile for having the indecency to write what was considered anti-Soviet poetry. Here she gives a detailed account of the experience, from her arrest in 1982 to her release and exile to the West in 1986. Under the circumstances, one might expect her memoir to be strident or self-pitying, but instead she is remarkably calm, good-humored, even witty: "I have been living like a queen: doors are flung open before me wherever I gointo cells, interrogation rooms, the courtroom." Ratushinskaya is a poet of international stature, but this book is not just for enthusiasts of her work. It should be read by everyone interested in international affairs. Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

In 1983 in the Soviet Union, twenty-eight-year-old poet and human rights activist Irina Ratushinskaya was sentenced to seven years of hard labor and five years of internal exile. Grey is the Color of Hope is her story of four years spent among a small group of female political prisoners, isolated from other "criminals" because they were considered "especially dangerous." From her first moment among these five women, Irina senses their commitment to ideals and each other. Irina is told she will be required to wear an identity tag. Refusing may cost Irina her only "long" meeting per year with her husband and her visits to the camp kiosk; it may even mean confinement in SHIZO - a place of deprivation and torture that can mean death. Refusing also means claiming herself as a human being: "Yes, we are behind barbed wire, they have stripped us of everything they could, they have torn us away from our friends and families, but unless we acknowledge this as their right, we remain free." Time and again, these women go on hunger strikes and survive the freezing temperatures of SHIZO to stake their claim to dignity and identity, for themselves and for each other. Their strength is awe-inspiring, their ingenuity and sense of humor beautiful. Do they confiscate your poetry? Write it on a bar of soap, memorize it, tap it through the pipes to the other prisoners in SHIZO. Above all, remember: "Back to freedom with a clear conscience." -- For great reviews of books for girls, check out Let's Hear It for the Girls: 375 Great Books for Readers 2-14. -- From 500 Great Books by Women; review by Erica Bauermeister

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 355 pages
• Publisher: Knopf; First edition. edition (September 12, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0394571401
• ISBN-13: 978-0394571409
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #853,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREY IS THE COLOR OF HOPE, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Grey Is The Color Of Hope (Hardcover)

I found the novel not only to be beautifully written and inspiring but also very educational. It describes what commonly happened in the Soviet Union to people like Irina Ratushinskaya. It is hard to believe that life in prison can be filled with hope, friendship and such morality. The novel is a testament to the stregnth of a human spirit.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was so powerful, May 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Grey Is The Color Of Hope (Hardcover)

I started reading this book after finding it in my gramma's book shelf. I'm not a big book reader, but I couldn't stop reading this. It really shows the hardships of prison. Each page shows compassion, and strength, the depth and detail makes my heart go out to the women in the story. This novel left me in tears. It is one of the best novels ever written. Ratushinskaya is a wonderful writter.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shades of Enduring Optimism; Hope against Monochrome, July 11, 2001

By 

jack schaaf - See all my reviews

This review is from: Grey Is the Color of Hope (Audio Cassette)

Ratushinskaya, ther very accomplished poet and former Soviet exile, has produced here one of the most rspectable and well arranged books of all time. I expect it will go down as one of the most prominent and exceptional gifts of memoir for the entirety ofthe twentieth century. Unjustifiably charged in 1983 for "anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda" (whatever that may actually mean is obviously conjectural)for her stance on human rights and opposition to persecution of personal religious freedom and conviction, Ratushinskaya was imprisoned with a sentence of seven years, four of which were filled. Her memoir here attests to a type of courage seldom seen in any era and exceed the sometimes absurd limitations imposed by politicoes as well, the genre of writing of such an ordeal. This book, along with the follow up ("In the Beginning") are highly impressionable, admirable and an answer to anyone who ever thought either one respected for their insights or convictions seldom put to paper such depth and maturity. I haveenormous repsect for her and can highly recommend to anyone this book.