A story about how big a role family plays in shaping a person—and how strongly the actions of ancestors can influence the fate of their descendants. Natalia Solovyova skillfully wove together the lives of several generations, combining in one novel events of the present day and the distant year of 1941. Special mention deserves the degree of historical accuracy. The author gathered the necessary information grain by grain and truthfully conveyed the atmosphere and everyday life of pre-war Moscow and the war-stricken Belarusian backwoods. You truly believe this story—and with difficulty hold back tears when yet another terrible trial falls onto the young Nina’s shoulders.