Ruth Balicki, the oldest daughter of Joseph and Margrit, is exceptionally resilient and determined. She is a dynamic character who grows through the course of the story. Initially, she is despondent and overwhelmed at the destruction of her family’s home and the arrest of both of her parents. She is slower to come to terms with the situation than Edek. However, Ruth’s resilience emerges as she decides to make herself useful to her community by starting a school for the local children, including her younger sister, Bronia. When Edek is arrested, Ruth becomes the sole carer for young Bronia.

Ruth, forced into acting like an adult even though she is just a child, makes the decisions for her family, including deciding to walk to Posen to find Edek, and then to Switzerland to find their parents. She is a mother figure for her siblings, Edek and Bronia, as well as their adopted brother, Jan. She becomes increasingly assertive and brave through the challenging circumstances of her family’s poverty and homelessness, as is illustrated when she insists on speaking to the Russian lieutenant in Warsaw and demands supplies for her family and students:

‘The lieutenant says come back the year after next,’ said the sentry.