Reading in the Garden

  Historical Fiction at its Best! What a jaw-dropping book about a boy in Romania during one of the most oppressive communist regimes led by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu (Beloved Leader) and his wife Elena (Heroine Mother).   In Romania, people are kept under complete control:  where they live (tiny hovel-like apartments); where they work (twelve hours a day, six days a week); and how much food and electricity they get (very little).  Even in their own homes, people speak in whispers because they know they are bugged and any word against the government will result in severe punishment or death. This is a country where cigarettes are a form of currency used to bribe dentists for Novocain or vodka is used to get an x-ray at a doctor’s office.   The biggest wield of power Ceausescu holds over Romanians is isolation and FEAR.  He instills fear in everyone by having his own citizens become informants on each other.  NO one can be trusted, including your own family because you never know whom