Kaarina Brooks

Boy from Karelia Kaarina Brooks

On Juha's ninth birthday in November, 1939, all ears are glued to the radio. War with Russia is looming. In the middle of the coldest winter in memory, the village is evacuated and the family must leave the homestead they have occupied for over 300 years. They wander from place to place, finally ending up close to Mount Salla in Lapland where Juha and his cousin, Leo, have some wild, foolhardy adventures. In 1941 the Finnish army pushes deep into Russia and it is safe to return home. The people start to plant the fields and rebuild their destroyed village. But in 1944 new evacuation orders come. Karelia is ceded to Russia as part of the peace settlement. Juha must deal with the grief of losing his home and find something positive to hold onto in the uncertain future.