MOONBEAM AWARD WINNER, 2019:
YA FICTION – HISTORICAL/CULTURAL, SILVER MEDAL
In this stunning debut novel set in the final year of Soviet Russia's collapse, a timid Jewish teenage girl reunites with her once-dissident mother and falls in love with a mysterious boy who may be an anti-Semite.
“In Katia Raina’s fascinating and sympathetic Castle of Concrete, the concerns of young adulthood are amplified tenfold against a background of historical upheavals. . . . [A] riveting story about growing up in dark political times.”
―Foreword Reviews (starred review)
Fiction | $15.95
Published by Young Europe Books
June 11, 2019 | 304 pages | 5-1/2 x 8-1/4
978-0-9995416-3-0
PRAISE
“In Katia Raina’s fascinating and sympathetic Castle of Concrete, the concerns of young adulthood are amplified tenfold against a background of historical upheavals. . . . [A] riveting story about growing up in dark political times.” ―Foreword Reviews (starred review)
“This book stole my heart. Gorgeously crafted and deliciously romantic, Castle of Concrete left me breathless until the very end.” ―Heather Demetrios, author of I’ll Meet You There
“Castle of Concrete is constructed of the finest story materials: complex characters, page flipping suspense, and exquisite details. All in a troubled historical landscape. The story kept me reading with pounding heart.” ―Joyce Moyer Hostetter, author of the award-winning Bakers Mountain Series
“Readers won’t easily forget spunky Sonya, struggling to understand her Jewish roots amid rising anti-Semitism, her activist mother’s secrets, and her attraction to two boys, each of them dangerous in their own way.” ―Lyn Miller-Lachmann, author of the award-winning Gringolandia
"A tour de force about the Russian people, and their first, tentative steps toward what had been denied for generations--a private life in all its imperfect glory. And then comes the ending." ―Lynda Durrant, author of The Last Skirt
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
When she was a child, Katia Raina played at construction sites and believed in magic mirrors. She emigrated from Russia at the age of almost sixteen. A former journalist and currently a middle school English teacher in Washington, D.C., she has an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives with her family just outside of D.C., and still believes in magic. Visit her at KatiaRaina.com.
