The book opens with this sentence: “They stand in line for blood” (1). Indeed, the word blood or some variation appears 40 times throughout the book. Why did Sepetys choose to open the story with this line? What tone does it set for the rest of the book?

Why did Sepetys choose to include excerpts from various historical documents? How do these excerpts enhance your understanding of the story?

Sepetys claims that the climate in Spain made its young people into “fountains of silence.” What does she mean by this?