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3.5⭐️ “Death is terrifying no matter where and when it comes, and life, though it brings us closer to death with every instant, is wonderful.”

I felt so gloomy after reading this story. Sadly, the brutality in history is not enough to stop us repeating the same mistake.

This is the book I picked up from the Serbia leg of our trip through Eastern Europe.

Wow! Apparently I started this book in June 2021. It is now February 2025 and I‘ve finally finished reading all 1150 pages! It‘s taken me as long to read it as it took Rebecca West to write it! An amazing, epic read that I was happy to dip into, savour, leave and return to over 4 years. The author at one point says that her book is so long probably no one will ever read it. She was wrong. Completed in 1941 and still being reprinted says it all.

This book of short stories (indeed, most were under 10 pages) was a terrific, albeit heartbreaking read. The author is Bosnian and lived in the former Yugoslavia worker as a journalist and writer during the war. His stories focus on the disruptiveness and impact of the war both directly and indirectly, and the cost to relationships between people and their land. The final story, The Library, affected me deeply. Recommended!

This is a book about an almost forgotten war and its forgotten children. A book that really got me. Maybe because I have memories attached to this war. Names, friendships. Sila talks about being a child in a town torn apart by war. About growing up and survival. And also about leaving. So strong, told in a quiet and thoughtful voice.

This book tells the story of airmen who ended up in German-occupied Yugoslavia in WWII and the rescue mission that recovered them. It‘s so good! The storytelling is cinematic in the best way, and I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. Major kudos to the Serb villagers who risked their lives to hide all those men from the Nazis.

This is one of the only history books that I truly enjoyed, Kaplan's writing style is so full of life, it makes you feel as if you know the people present in the story. A journalistic/travelling way of explaining major events is so enjoyable! Definitely a worthy read, even for people that aren't interested in history