Reviews

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway

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ashtree11's review

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

I have never read any books about this topic, and frankly didn't really know anything about the Siege of Sarajevo. While the book only spanned a 3 week time period (or less) I found a lot of depth to the thoughts of the characters, and the writing depicted the violence and how the war had changed things. I really like how this book focuses on the civilians, and touches on their memories of the city before the war started. (Read for Central Book Club)

yoora_zan's review

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

Content Warnings

caliesha's review against another edition

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4.0

Despite not being from or personally experiencing the subject, Galloway writes beautifully about the Siege of Sarajevo that occurred from 1992-1996. This book feels like an insider's perspective and comes across as a raw story. The characters aren't terribly important and this book doesn't follow a traditional plot graph - both of which are factors that make it feel more like a glimpse into the situation; Galloway doesn't seek to tell the whole story, nor does he romanticize it. Instead, we get a short look into the lives of characters and the brutal reality of modern war. It was heart-warming at times, brutal at others, even funny occasionally... but overall a powerful read. My one qualm is the ending - I feel like it ended abruptly. I would have loved to see the opening passage (which repeats throughout the first chapter) to have been repeated at the end in regards to the cellist. Anyways, still a great read.

Overall - 4 stars!

celestesith's review

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dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

khairun_atika's review

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3.0

Poignant and raw, this haunting story of a war-torn Sarajevo interweaves the lives of three different characters, whose confusion and torment of the war clashes with the calm and haunted cellist. The cellist played on for twenty-two days, the sorrow from his music soared right into the lives and hearts of Arrow, Dragan and Kenan. I was particularly in awe of Arrow, the conflicted sniper who explored the morality of her occupation in the war. An insightful and intriguing read.

sammy_salmon's review against another edition

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5.0

This is an incredible book. Heartbreaking and bittersweet. Will go down as one of my all-time favourites.
I feel that people (myself included) need to know more about this awful conflict.
My favourite quote from the book which had the most profound impact on me was:
'I will not live in a city where dead bodies lie abandoned in the streets, and you will not tell the world I do.'