Breaking Stalin's Nose

by Eugene Yelchin Narrated by Mark Turetsky

Overview

Celebrated artist and author Eugene Yelchin drew on his own experience growing up in Soviet Russia to pen this Newbery Honor Book. Breaking Stalin's Nose follows 10-year-old Sasha Zaichik, who wants nothing more than to be a Young Pioneer in Stalin's Communist Party. But when his father, a member of the State Security police, is arrested the night before the Young Pioneer ceremony, Sasha is left to re-evaluate everything he's been taught about Stalin and what it truly means to be a good comrade.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

“Mr. Yelchin has compressed into two days of events an entire epoch, giving young readers a glimpse of the precariousness of life in a capricious yet ever-watchful totalitarian state.” —Wall Street Journal

“A miracle of brevity, this affecting novel zeroes in on two days and one boy to personalize Stalin's killing machine of the '30s. . . . Black-and-white drawings march across the pages to juxtapose hope and fear, truth and tyranny, small moments and historical forces, innocence and evil. This Newbery Honor book offers timeless lessons about dictatorship, disillusionment and personal choice.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“The cat-and-mouse chase that pits Sasha's whole world against him will rivet middle-grade readers, but this title will hold special appeal for older students whose grasp of content outstrips their reading proficiency.” —BCCB

“Picture book author/illustrator Yelchin makes an impressive middle-grade debut with this compact novel about a devoted young Communist in Stalin-era Russia, illustrated with dramatically lit spot art.” —Publishers Weekly

“* This brief novel gets at the heart of a society that asks its citizens, even its children, to report on relatives and friends. Appropriately menacing illustrations by first-time novelist Yelchin add a sinister tone.” —The Horn Book, starred review

“Yelchin's graphite illustrations are an effective complement to his prose, which unfurls in Sasha's steady, first-person voice, and together they tell an important tale.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Yelchin skillfully combines narrative with dramatic black-and-white illustrations to tell the story of life in the Soviet Union under Stalin.” —School Library Journal

JULY 2012 - AudioFile

Sasha Zaichik idolizes his father, a Communist hero, and Stalin. He’s been waiting to join the Young Pioneers for most of his life. But the night before the ceremony, his father is arrested, and everything Sasha believes in is put to the test. Mark Turetsky infuses naïve optimism and youthfulness into the voice of Sasha, the unreliable narrator. As Sasha becomes aware of inconsistencies and unsettling situations in his cherished Communist state, Turetsky narrates with a tone of confusion and then slow realization that dramatizes Sasha’s growing maturity. A chilling author’s note connects Yelchin’s own experience in Soviet Russia to the story. Kids will want to listen to this Newbery Honor title while following along, so they don’t miss the pencil illustrations by the author. E.A.B. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

"There's no place for the likes of you in our class," Sasha Zaichik's teacher tells him, and that seems to be the motto of the whole Stalinist nation.

Yelchin's debut novel does a superb job of depicting the tyranny of the group, whether residents of a communal apartment, kids on the playground, students in the classroom or government officials. It's the readiness of the group to create outsiders—bad ones, "unreliables," "wreckers"—by instilling fear in everyone that chills. Not many books for such a young audience address the Stalinist era, when, between 1923 and 1953, leaving a legacy of fear for future generations. Joseph Stalin's State Security was responsible for exiling, executing or imprisoning 20 million people. Sasha is 10 years old and is devoted to Stalin, even writing adoring letters to Comrade Stalin expressing his eagerness at becoming a Young Pioneer. But his mother has died mysteriously, his father has been imprisoned and Sasha finds he has important moral choices to make. Yelchin's graphite illustrations are an effective complement to his prose, which unfurls in Sasha's steady, first-person voice, and together they tell an important tale.

A story just as relevant in our world, "where innocent people face persecution and death for making a choice about what they believe to be right," as that of Yelchin's childhood. (author's note) (Historical fiction. 9-12)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171196226
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	06/01/2012
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

Read an Excerpt

Breaking Stalin's Nose

1

MY DAD IS A HERO and a Communist and, more than anything, I want to be like him. I can never be like Comrade Stalin, of course. He's our great Leader and Teacher.

The voice on the radio says, "Soviet people, follow our great Leader and Teacher—the beloved Stalin—forward and ever forward to Communism! Stalin is our banner! Stalin is our future! Stalin is our happiness!" Then a song comes on, "A Bright Future Is Open to Us." I know every word, and, singing along, I take out a pencil and paper and start writing.

Dear Comrade stalin,

I want to thank you personally for my happy childhood. I am fortunate to live in the soviet Union, the most democratic and progressive country in the world. I have read how hard the lives of children are in the capitalist countries and I feel pity for all those who do not live in the USSR. They will never see their dreams come true.

My greatest dream has always been to join the Young soviet Pioneers—the most important step in becoming a real Communist like my dad. By the time I was one year old, my dad had taught me the Pioneers greeting. He would say, "Young Pioneer! Ready to fight for the cause of the Communist Party and Comrade stalin?" In response, I would raise my hand in the Pioneers salute.

Of course, I couldn't reply "Always ready!" like the real Pioneers do; I couldn't talk yet. But I'm old enough now and my dream is becoming a reality. Tomorrow at my school's Pioneers rally, I will finally become a Pioneer.

It's not possible to be a true Pioneer without training one's character in the stalinist spirit .

I solemnly promise to make myself strong from physical exercise, to forge my Communist character, and always to be vigilant, because our capitalist enemies are never asleep. I will not rest until I am truly useful to my beloved soviet land and to you personally, dear Comrade stalin. Thank you for giving me such a wonderful opportunity.

Forever yours, sasha Zaichik, Moscow Elementary chool #37

When I imagine Comrade Stalin reading my letter, I get so excited that I can't sit still. I rise up and march like a Pioneer around the room, then head to the kitchen to wait for my dad.

Copyright © 2011 by Eugene Yelchin

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