Helpful Score: 5
I was really moved by this book. Being an American, I take my freedom for granted; war is something that happens far away. 9/11 was as close as I have ever come to experiencing the fear and dread that accompanies war. This story takes the reader inside Sarajevo and makes war come alive through three main characters stories, four if you include the cellist. But his story, although woven throughout the book, doesnt take center stage; instead, it is a backdrop for Kenan, Arrow and Dragans stories.
Favorite passage: She realizes that for no particular reason she stumbled into the core of what it is to be human. Its a rare gift to understand that your life is wondrous, and that it wont last forever.
Favorite passage: She realizes that for no particular reason she stumbled into the core of what it is to be human. Its a rare gift to understand that your life is wondrous, and that it wont last forever.
Helpful Score: 4
This is a haunting and unforgettable story that centers on four characters and how they grapple with the violence, destruction and corruption surrounding them in Sarajevo. Each character struggles to retain hope that their city will survive and does what he/she can to simply get through each moment. So touchingly tragic, yet shows how even when all around you is crumbling, the spirit can not be broken. DON'T MISS THIS ONE!
Helpful Score: 4
Steven Galloway takes you into the war torn city of Sarajevo through the eyes of three different citizens. The cellist, who has sworn to play 22 days straight for each of the lives lost when a bomb destroyed a local bakery. The sniper, who was sent to keep him from getting killed and a young father, trying desperately to provide for his family and survive the siege of the city. As you read through the pages, you feel very much apart of their struggles and hardships, but can also see the glimmer of hope and humanity.
Beautifully written. This is a story that I won't forget.
Beautifully written. This is a story that I won't forget.
Helpful Score: 3
Compelling read -- this tells the story of four people in Sarajevo during the war. The imagery Galloway uses really brings them alive -- you know them. This is not a political book; I highly recommend it. Jo
Helpful Score: 1
A vulnerable, moving view into the innocents suffering and rationalizing the horror of war. This novel is a short compressed looking glass into the hearts and souls of four victim's of the longest siege in history, grief forever becomes apart of them while they find the strength and courage to keep being themselves not letting the enemy define Sarajevo or themselves. Elegantly written and will always weigh on my heart. I shall never hear the composition of Albinoni's Adagio in G minor and forget.
Helpful Score: 1
The Cellist of Sarajevo is told from the point-of-view of three different Sarajevan citizens during the siege of 1992. Though in different stages of life and circumstances, each struggles with the devastation of the city, the fear of snipers in the hills, the lack of food and previously common comforts. I read this book in a day and am still thinking of it the morning after. As Americans, we simply can't fathom what it would be like to have our homeland under siege. This book brought me a bit closer to understanding and left me grateful for how blessed we truly are.
This is a book where every sentence must be read. There are no spare sentences. This a novel about the Siege of the city of Sarajevo from the view point of 4 people and how they deal with the war and the dangers under which they live-- snipers, food and water deprivation and the huge uncertainties that they deal with daily and the fear of losing their own humanity in the face of so much loss.
Excellent examination of the lives of 4 people living in war-torn Sarajevo.
This is a novel that more people should read. In so many books set during wartime, we read of great battles and underground movements. Galloway presents the detailed, day-to-day struggles of inhabitants in a city under siege: the challenges of getting water or even just crossing a street. 'The Cellist of Sarajevo' was one of the best books I read in 2012.
This book is short, but it took me such a long time to read. I just couldn't get into the story. I thought the plot sounded so interesting, but very little of it was. The book is narrated by four different people - each experiencing the war in Sarajevo in a different way. However, I was only really interested in one of the narrators. The others were so uninteresting that I kept getting them mixed up! I think it's a great concept, and parts captivated my attention, but overall I was disappointed. It was his first novel, so I haven't given up on him yet.
This is a novel that more people should read. In so many books set during wartime, we read of great battles and underground movements. Galloway presents the detailed, day-to-day struggles of inhabitants in a city under siege: the challenges of getting water or even just crossing a street. 'The Cellist of Sarajevo' was one of the best books I read in 2012.
