The Story
Set in the turbulent years following the Russian Revolution, We the Living tells the story of Kira, an independent and strong-willed college student who loathes the new state-run society and defies those who pressure her to conform.
Kira encounters Leo, an intriguing, aristocratic young man. He is a fugitive hiding from the secret police due to suspected anti-Bolshevik activities. Unknown to family or friends, Kira and Leo begin to meet secretly and soon fall deeply in love. Desperate to flee their oppressive existence and to be free to live their own lives, the two attempt to escape the country on a smuggler’s ship, but the effort fails.
When Kira is overheard at the university voicing her hatred of the ruling Bolsheviks, she is rebuked by Andrei, a secret police agent and idealistic Communist. Kira continues to cross paths with Andrei. Over time, the two form a mutual respect despite their opposing ideologies.
Now living together, Kira and Leo struggle under the iron-fisted regime. Both have been expelled from the university, which has become exclusively for communist students. With little hope for the future and unable to find work other than hard, manual labor, Leo’s health deteriorates and he develops tuberculosis. Kira’s desperate efforts to have him sent to a sanatorium are rejected by authorities.
Kira calls on Andrei, who is unaware of her relationship with Leo. In an agonized confession, Andrei reveals that he has fallen in love with Kira. Willing to do anything to save Leo’s life, Kira sets in motion a dangerous plan that will ultimately compel her to betray the man she worships. The lives of all three are now intertwined, shrouded with secrets and spiraling toward disaster.
In the powerful climax of We the Living, each of the three young people must confront the heartbreaking consequences of life in a totalitarian society.
An epic story of the unconquerable in the human spirit, We the Living is at its core a blazing declaration of the right of every human being to live free.
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