Patrik and his friends are nervously purchasing a Beatles record on the black market in the opening chapter of a novel examining oppression under the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia in the 1960s through the eyes of a teenage boy. The record is more than just good music to the teens, it’s also symbolic of freedom. Patrik’s parents have refused to join the Communist Party. They’ve also avoided making a decision about trying to leave the country. Then Danika, Patrik’s closest friend, announces that her father is joining the Party. Danika—the girl who helped Patrik deface the statue of Vladimir Lenin outside their school. Danika—the girl he’s recently realized he likes as more than a friend. The news is more than personal heartbreak for Patrik. Danika’s father joined for the perks—little things that will make their spare lives easier—but even without fierce Party loyalty it’s a threat: Danika and her parents are too close to their lives for comfort, there’s too much they might tell. This becomes painfully clear after Patrik’s act of defiance during a May Day parade leaves the family no choice: They must try to flee. Carolyn Marsden reveals the fear that is part of every day for Patrik and his family while underscoring its impact on touchstones of teenage experience, from falling in love to wanting to rebel, in this tense story. (Age 12 and older)

In 1960s Czechoslovakia, Patrik participates in and rebels against the communist regime, knowing that anyone could become an enemy in the blink of an eye.

Fourteen-year-old Patrik rebels against the communist regime in small ways whenever he gets the chance: spray-painting slogans, listening to contraband Beatles records, even urinating on a statue of Lenin under cover of night. But anti-Party sentiment is risky, and when party interference cuts a little too close to home, Patrik and his family find themselves faced with a decision — and a grave secret — that will change everything. As the moments tick toward too late, Patrik takes his family’s fate in hand, risking everything for a chance at freedom. Examining the psychological toll of living under an authoritarian regime, Carolyn Marsden allows readers to experience both Patrik’s persistent worry and his hope for better things.
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