Why we don't know much about Stalin.

"Americans might be less receptive because of our own mythology of the Second World War. Anything that detracts from that simplified portrait is often unwelcome. Tales of Nazi horrors inflate the American experience and place American efforts front and center. Discussion of the central role of the Soviet Union, and its 20 million dead, deflates American experience and pushes American efforts to the margins."

The MV Wilhelm Gustloff . . .

. . . sank 71 years ago today. Over 9,000 passengers—including many Displaced Persons—died.

"The name of the film will be changed in order to avoid confusion with the upcoming adaptation of EL James' Fifty Shades of Gray."

A movie based on Ruta Sepetys's novel, Between Shades of Gray, will be filmed this year.

A folder of photos marked, "NOT FOR PUBLICATION."

Author Ruta Sepetys writes about a discovery of her family's photos.

Read here and here about the exhibits to which Sepetys refers.