What do you think?
Rate this book
خداحافظ سارایوو
هانا دوازده سال داشت كه آتكای بيست و يك ساله، او و خواهر ديگرشان ناديای چهارده ساله را سوار اتوبوس مخصوص پناهندگان كرد كه زنان و بچهها را از شهر جنگزده خارج میكرد. آتكا در شهر ماند تا مراقب پنج خواهر و برادر ديگرش باشد. آنها تصور میكردند جنگ چند هفته بيشتر دوام نخواهد آورد اما... ؛
448 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2011
117 people are currently reading
3422 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 216 reviews
January 5, 2016
A true story based on the journals kept by two sisters, of ten siblings, who are separated during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the mid-1990s.
The book has many examples of selfless acts of generosity by people who are initially strangers to the girls and their family. These provide heartening respite from the descriptions of how to avoid being shot at by snipers while collecting water during a seige; how to eke out food and fuel supplies during a blockade – jeans and leather shoes burn well apparently, once you’ve run out of trees, doors, furniture, and books; and how to stay sane when it would be so much easier to not.
I’d known from watching a documentary on Annie Leibovitz that Susan Sontag had flown to Sarajevo during this time to put on a performance of Waiting for Godot but this book gave me a much greater understanding of just what a stroke of surreal genius that gesture was. And lurking in the backdrop to Atka and Hana’s story are… concentration camps. For crying out loud – and yes, the book did make me cry, many times – how can anyone, anywhere, in this day and age, still think that concentration camps are any kind of an appropriate approach to problem solving??
I’m shelving this book alongside The Diary of Anne Frank as a reminder that while times and technology change, people and politics do not. The good, and the abhorrent unfortunately, remain.
The book has many examples of selfless acts of generosity by people who are initially strangers to the girls and their family. These provide heartening respite from the descriptions of how to avoid being shot at by snipers while collecting water during a seige; how to eke out food and fuel supplies during a blockade – jeans and leather shoes burn well apparently, once you’ve run out of trees, doors, furniture, and books; and how to stay sane when it would be so much easier to not.
I’d known from watching a documentary on Annie Leibovitz that Susan Sontag had flown to Sarajevo during this time to put on a performance of Waiting for Godot but this book gave me a much greater understanding of just what a stroke of surreal genius that gesture was. And lurking in the backdrop to Atka and Hana’s story are… concentration camps. For crying out loud – and yes, the book did make me cry, many times – how can anyone, anywhere, in this day and age, still think that concentration camps are any kind of an appropriate approach to problem solving??
I’m shelving this book alongside The Diary of Anne Frank as a reminder that while times and technology change, people and politics do not. The good, and the abhorrent unfortunately, remain.
August 31, 2013
OK, the two authors of this book had an important story to tell. These two sisters and their family lived through the Siege of Sarajevo, beginning in 1992. The Muslim family living in Sarajevo was very large - ten kids! Two of the kids, one twelve and the other fifteen were evacuated to Croatia. Another daughter was in Vienna when the siege began so she too later lived with her sisters in Croatia. The rest, along with their mother and father and two grandmothers lived through the Siege from March 1992 through November 1995. The mother chose to return to Sarajevo. 10.000 were killed. 60.000 were wounded. Remember this was in Europe; this was in recent times. And what did the UN do? Not much of anything.... What did the European Union do? Very little. It was very hard to listen to this because it felt so close in both time and place. It felt like next door! And I have been in Zagreb where the three girls in Croatia stayed. It spooked me. What happened to this family will shake you, and it is a story that needs to be told. If you want to know exactly what it might have been like to be there in Sarajevo during this war, read this book. You also hear what it was like for the three girls alone in Zagreb, not knowing what was happening to their family. You will get all the facts clearly presented.
It almost feels like a young adult book though. Why? because everything is explained very simply, but yes, also correctly. Their is love too, and jokes and the dialogs are what you hear on any modern day TV show. It is accurate, but don't look for nuanced ideas or skilled writing.
The narration of the audiobook was done by Bernadette Dune. It was fine, and you know what I mean by that. Not special, just OK. Just ordinary talking. It could have been better. Since the story is told by both twelve year old Hanna and her twenty-one year old sister Atka, it would have been better if the intonations were a bit different for the two. I didn't mix them up though. You always knew who was speaking because they were in different places. You could tell who was speaking by what was going on.
The content of the book pulls you in, but how it was written is just ordinary.
It almost feels like a young adult book though. Why? because everything is explained very simply, but yes, also correctly. Their is love too, and jokes and the dialogs are what you hear on any modern day TV show. It is accurate, but don't look for nuanced ideas or skilled writing.
The narration of the audiobook was done by Bernadette Dune. It was fine, and you know what I mean by that. Not special, just OK. Just ordinary talking. It could have been better. Since the story is told by both twelve year old Hanna and her twenty-one year old sister Atka, it would have been better if the intonations were a bit different for the two. I didn't mix them up though. You always knew who was speaking because they were in different places. You could tell who was speaking by what was going on.
The content of the book pulls you in, but how it was written is just ordinary.
March 13, 2017
'Do you understand much about the situation here?' I asked.
'I'm trying to,' he said, 'but it's confusing because you all look the same; Serbs, Croats and Muslims, I can't tell the difference.' Mike got up and slung his cameras around his neck.
'I don't understand how you lived side by side for so long and then the Serbs turned against you.' He shook his head.
In my opinion no "human" understood or will ever understand the reasons of ethnic killing
In the beginning the novel was very interesting because it told two sides of the story, Atka and her family being in Sarajevo and Hana and Nadia who had the chance to go to Croatia as refugees...
I also found it very interesting that the family consisted of 10 siblings and two grandmothers, which is unusual of Bosnian families be that huge, it was kind of sad to see how each of them coped with the war...
'I'm trying to,' he said, 'but it's confusing because you all look the same; Serbs, Croats and Muslims, I can't tell the difference.' Mike got up and slung his cameras around his neck.
'I don't understand how you lived side by side for so long and then the Serbs turned against you.' He shook his head.
In my opinion no "human" understood or will ever understand the reasons of ethnic killing
In the beginning the novel was very interesting because it told two sides of the story, Atka and her family being in Sarajevo and Hana and Nadia who had the chance to go to Croatia as refugees...
I also found it very interesting that the family consisted of 10 siblings and two grandmothers, which is unusual of Bosnian families be that huge, it was kind of sad to see how each of them coped with the war...
November 20, 2016
I was torn whether to give this book two or three stars.... it really needs 2.5
The story is very moving and it was good to read a first hand experience. But.... the writing is not particularly engaging and I think it could have been so much more. Living through the Sarajevo siege was clearly traumatic, difficult and horrifying, yet through this the Atka's family stayed strong but the emotion of the writing was a little flat. I really should have felt more moved than I did. It read like a list of I did this, he did that then we did something else. There was a lack of description of emotions and relationships.
So I think this is an important book that should be read, particularly given that in the last twenty years the world still hasn't learnt to treat refugees as individual people with hopes, dreams and needs. In conclusion it's an important read about horrifying events that we as a world community largely ignored but it is not a 'great read'.
The story is very moving and it was good to read a first hand experience. But.... the writing is not particularly engaging and I think it could have been so much more. Living through the Sarajevo siege was clearly traumatic, difficult and horrifying, yet through this the Atka's family stayed strong but the emotion of the writing was a little flat. I really should have felt more moved than I did. It read like a list of I did this, he did that then we did something else. There was a lack of description of emotions and relationships.
So I think this is an important book that should be read, particularly given that in the last twenty years the world still hasn't learnt to treat refugees as individual people with hopes, dreams and needs. In conclusion it's an important read about horrifying events that we as a world community largely ignored but it is not a 'great read'.
June 9, 2015
Loved this book, I didn't know too much about the Bosnia war except for snippets so for me this was a huge education piece whilst following a families story. I couldn't put it down, it was so compelling and a really important book for me to read because of what I learnt.
January 13, 2013
Quite an amazing story of the harshness of war, the love of family and the transformation afforded by deeds of the kindhearted and generous of spirit, when moved by pity towards our defenceless sisters. This is the story of the children of a family torn apart by the outrages of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the 1990s. The experiences of the two narrating sisters are quite different, with the 21 year old Atka forced to stay behind in Sarajevo, and act as mother to her many other siblings; and Hana, who made it to the relative safety of Croatia, and had a more conventional, though lonely and parentless experience in which she went to school and was supported by the family of neighbours.
It is an inspiring story which documents time and again the kindness and generosity of strangers, and in which the girls happen upon some wonderful good luck. But, as a mother, I found it disturbing to observe the emotional distance both the girls parents seemed to need to impose on the children in order to cope with the outrages to their lives. Hana and Atka are not resentful of this through much of the book, and I don't mean to judge them either - heaven knows how any of us would cope if faced with the trials imposed on these people. "There but for the grace of God go I" is the only reasonable attitude to have, IMHO. But it is clear the high price that was paid by the girls we follow most closely through the book, in loneliness, depression and the heavy weight of responsibility under which they sometimes buckled and sought escape. For the girls, this leads to dependency on others, pregnancy and perhaps premature sexual relationships, though this is not clear (and certainly doesn't seem to apply directly to either of our narrators).
The writing style is a little stilted, especially in the dialogue, which stops me from going any higher in my rating, but this is an immensely readable book and a very emotionally satisfying story. Or I'm just a sucker for the misfortunes of children.
It is an inspiring story which documents time and again the kindness and generosity of strangers, and in which the girls happen upon some wonderful good luck. But, as a mother, I found it disturbing to observe the emotional distance both the girls parents seemed to need to impose on the children in order to cope with the outrages to their lives. Hana and Atka are not resentful of this through much of the book, and I don't mean to judge them either - heaven knows how any of us would cope if faced with the trials imposed on these people. "There but for the grace of God go I" is the only reasonable attitude to have, IMHO. But it is clear the high price that was paid by the girls we follow most closely through the book, in loneliness, depression and the heavy weight of responsibility under which they sometimes buckled and sought escape. For the girls, this leads to dependency on others, pregnancy and perhaps premature sexual relationships, though this is not clear (and certainly doesn't seem to apply directly to either of our narrators).
The writing style is a little stilted, especially in the dialogue, which stops me from going any higher in my rating, but this is an immensely readable book and a very emotionally satisfying story. Or I'm just a sucker for the misfortunes of children.
November 7, 2015
You can also read my review here: https://toomanybooksnotenoughtime.wor...
The Balkan War of the 90s is one of those events that I have a morbid fascination with. I struggle to understand how it happened, how people that you had been happily living next to for years could suddenly turn into your enemy, how the Western nations could just stand back and watch the atrocities that were being committed and do nothing. It is a subject I return to over and over again, trying to garner some insight into, but I always come up empty.
Unfortunately this book added little to my understanding and I don’t suppose I should have expected it to as it is the retelling of two sisters experience of the war, one in Sarajevo and the other in Zagreb. While what they went through was awful and I can’t imagine having to live through something like that myself, I felt somewhat detached from it. This may be because it was written in English which is not their first language. I found the language quite simplistic and I think that this impacted their ability to fully describe the horrors they endured.
However, I’m not sorry that I read this book particularly at this time in history when the world is again in the midst of a horrific war and millions of refugees are now homeless and looking to start new lives in safety and security. I think it was a good reminder that nobody chooses to be stuck in the middle of a war and that when you are placed in that situation you will do anything and everything you can to ensure the survival of your family. In that respect, this book is definitely worth reading.
The Balkan War of the 90s is one of those events that I have a morbid fascination with. I struggle to understand how it happened, how people that you had been happily living next to for years could suddenly turn into your enemy, how the Western nations could just stand back and watch the atrocities that were being committed and do nothing. It is a subject I return to over and over again, trying to garner some insight into, but I always come up empty.
Unfortunately this book added little to my understanding and I don’t suppose I should have expected it to as it is the retelling of two sisters experience of the war, one in Sarajevo and the other in Zagreb. While what they went through was awful and I can’t imagine having to live through something like that myself, I felt somewhat detached from it. This may be because it was written in English which is not their first language. I found the language quite simplistic and I think that this impacted their ability to fully describe the horrors they endured.
However, I’m not sorry that I read this book particularly at this time in history when the world is again in the midst of a horrific war and millions of refugees are now homeless and looking to start new lives in safety and security. I think it was a good reminder that nobody chooses to be stuck in the middle of a war and that when you are placed in that situation you will do anything and everything you can to ensure the survival of your family. In that respect, this book is definitely worth reading.
November 28, 2014
It never ceases to amaze me the level of horror, degradation and deprivation humans continue to put on one another in the name of some pumped up righteous ideal! The evidence has been mounting for centuries that slugging it out means there are a lot more losers than winners. Yet time and time again when the human story is revealed it is the ordinary folk intent on surviving that show us what courage and strength mean. It is the love and connection to those closest that means super human feats are performed.
Goodbye Sarajevo is one such story it centered around a large family from Sarajevo. Atka the eldest daughter and Hana a younger sister kept journals throughout their ordeals. So much of the story is lifted from these and gives you a real sense of what they went through and how such things fell. It is a lesson in gratitude and love. The family are not strongly religious or political but clearly have ethics and humanity and this is what I believe serves them all so well in the end. It is a wonderful read that has you feeling very desperate for them all but with a touching and surprising end. Highly recommend.
Goodbye Sarajevo is one such story it centered around a large family from Sarajevo. Atka the eldest daughter and Hana a younger sister kept journals throughout their ordeals. So much of the story is lifted from these and gives you a real sense of what they went through and how such things fell. It is a lesson in gratitude and love. The family are not strongly religious or political but clearly have ethics and humanity and this is what I believe serves them all so well in the end. It is a wonderful read that has you feeling very desperate for them all but with a touching and surprising end. Highly recommend.
November 8, 2018
بوسنی تنها کشور اروپایی هست که جمعیت مسلمانش مهاجر نیستند و اصالتا اهل همان کشور هستند. اما حتی این مسئله هم جلوی سازمان ملل رو برای بستن چشمش بهروی جنایتهایی که علیه مسلمانان بوسنی انجام میشد، بگیره. محاصره سارایوو ۴۶ ماه ادامه داشت و در این مدت بیش از ۱۰۰۰۰ نفر از مردم شهر در اثر نبود امکانات اولیه مثل آب، غذا و انرژی و بمباران و تیراندازی مستقیم صربها به کوچهها و خانهها و بیمارستانها، کشته شدند. کتاب با نثر روان و جذاب زندگی دو خواهر مسلمان بوسنیایی رو روایت میکنه. در طی کتاب عقاید مردمی که مسلمان بودند اما بعد از یک دوره حکومت کمونیستی، حالا با فروپاشی یوگسلاوی وارد دورهی جدیدی برای کشورشون شده بودند رو به وضوح نشون میده. و در نهایت این رو که مسلمانان بوسنی در کشور خودشون، ولی در نهایت غربت، به دلیلی که حتی از اون خبر نداشتند مورد یکی از فجیعترین نسلکشیهای تاریخ بشر واقع شده بودند.
October 31, 2014
Wow
This was truly an amazing book. The dichotomy between those mindlessly killing and those helping the family was both sad and heartening.
This was truly an amazing book. The dichotomy between those mindlessly killing and those helping the family was both sad and heartening.
March 4, 2024
Everyone needs to read this book. My perspective and worldview is forever changed.
Sobbing…
Sobbing…
March 8, 2019
داستان با جدا شدن دو خواهر، آتکا و هانا، و پیمانی که آن دو با هم میبندند شروع میشود؛ اینکه تا پایان جنگ و دوباره با هم در «خانه» بودن، شجاع باشند. کل کتاب روایت ساده و اول شخص دو خواهر است از شرایط آنها که در سارایوو زیر رگبار بودند و آنها که به خاطر رگبار خانه را ترک کرده بودند و در کشورهای دیگر پناه جسته بودند. میشود درک کرد که به دلیل اول شخص بودن روایت و حالت «دفترچه خاطراتی» داستان که یک فصل در میان از زبان آتکا، خواهر بیست و چند ساله، و هانا، ۱۳ ساله، نوشته شده، نویسندگان از توصیفهای ادبی و شاخ و برگ دادن به روایت صرف نظر کردهاند اما نمیتوان نادیده گرفت که چنین داستانی پتانسیل زیادی برای این دست توصیفها دارد و میتوانست خیلی گیراتر از چیزی که اکنون هست باشد.
اگر مثل من داستانهای حاشیه و متن دوران جنگ را دوست داشته باشید، نکات جذاب (و البته همانطور که گفتم به شدت مختصر و ناپرداخته) در این کتاب کم نخواهید یافت. از امیدی که انسان در کنار و میانهی مرگ حس میکند (این «امید» فریبنده و ضامن دردهای بیشتر) تا چنگ زدن به باورها حتی در یک خداناباور هرچند در حد تکرار یک مانترای صبحگاهی: «امروز روز خوبی برای مردن نیست». عشقی که میانهی جنگ متولد میشود (همیشه عشق زیر گلوله از زیباترین چیزها برایم بوده؛ مبارزه برای زندگی و فرصتِ بیشتر، جمعی شدن یک مسئلهی فردی و فردیت یافتن یک پدیدهی اجتماعی) و روحیه و فعالیتهای هیجانانگیز یک عکاس خبری که دلیل انتخابِ بودن در چنان شرایطی را، اشتیاق برای بودن در جاهایی که تاریخ در حال تغییر است عنوان میکند و در عین حال از استفاده از بدبختی مردم و آدمی که به آن تبدیل میشود هراس دارد. جایی دیگر از داستان، وقتی از یک افسر ارشد ارتش بوسنی دربارهی اخلاقی بودنِ حضور یک پسر ۱۳ساله در ارتش سؤال میکنند، افسر پاسخ میدهد: «این خارجیها منو زیر سؤال میبرن؟ اخلاقیات دنیا چی که نشسته و سلاخی شدن ما رو تماشا میکنه؟» که در کنار تمامی مرگها و زندگیهایی که در طول کتاب با آنها مواجه میشوید، مرگ انسانهایی در صف نان و آب و زندگی سربازانی که مست و لایعقل از خط مقدم بازگشتهاند، کمی قسمت اخلاقی مغزتان را هم قلقلک میدهد. طبیعی شدنِ چهرهی جنگ و صدای گلوله برای مردم شهر از جایی از کتاب به بعد، حسی که پناهجویان نسبت به حضور خود و تکتک رفتارهای دوستانه و خصمانهی مردم کشور مقصد دارند، تأثیر زندگی و کنار هم بودن مردمی از فرهنگهای متفاوت بر دید آنها از یکدیگر و رویکرد آشنای سازمان ملل و جهان نسبت به زندگی مردمی که چشم و گوش به سمت کمترین اخبار بیرون از شهر و ناجیان احتمالی داشتند از نکات دیگر جالب توجه کتاب است.
در مجموع اگر به داستان جنگ و آن بخش از اروپای شرقی علاقه داشته باشید، کتاب میتواند برایتان جذاب باشد اما باید انتظارتان از توصیف موقعیتها و شرایط، شخصیتپردازیها، درگیر کردن خواننده با جزئیات احساسی و درونیات کاراکترها و در یک کلام زندگی کردن درون داستان پایین بیاورید.
اگر مثل من داستانهای حاشیه و متن دوران جنگ را دوست داشته باشید، نکات جذاب (و البته همانطور که گفتم به شدت مختصر و ناپرداخته) در این کتاب کم نخواهید یافت. از امیدی که انسان در کنار و میانهی مرگ حس میکند (این «امید» فریبنده و ضامن دردهای بیشتر) تا چنگ زدن به باورها حتی در یک خداناباور هرچند در حد تکرار یک مانترای صبحگاهی: «امروز روز خوبی برای مردن نیست». عشقی که میانهی جنگ متولد میشود (همیشه عشق زیر گلوله از زیباترین چیزها برایم بوده؛ مبارزه برای زندگی و فرصتِ بیشتر، جمعی شدن یک مسئلهی فردی و فردیت یافتن یک پدیدهی اجتماعی) و روحیه و فعالیتهای هیجانانگیز یک عکاس خبری که دلیل انتخابِ بودن در چنان شرایطی را، اشتیاق برای بودن در جاهایی که تاریخ در حال تغییر است عنوان میکند و در عین حال از استفاده از بدبختی مردم و آدمی که به آن تبدیل میشود هراس دارد. جایی دیگر از داستان، وقتی از یک افسر ارشد ارتش بوسنی دربارهی اخلاقی بودنِ حضور یک پسر ۱۳ساله در ارتش سؤال میکنند، افسر پاسخ میدهد: «این خارجیها منو زیر سؤال میبرن؟ اخلاقیات دنیا چی که نشسته و سلاخی شدن ما رو تماشا میکنه؟» که در کنار تمامی مرگها و زندگیهایی که در طول کتاب با آنها مواجه میشوید، مرگ انسانهایی در صف نان و آب و زندگی سربازانی که مست و لایعقل از خط مقدم بازگشتهاند، کمی قسمت اخلاقی مغزتان را هم قلقلک میدهد. طبیعی شدنِ چهرهی جنگ و صدای گلوله برای مردم شهر از جایی از کتاب به بعد، حسی که پناهجویان نسبت به حضور خود و تکتک رفتارهای دوستانه و خصمانهی مردم کشور مقصد دارند، تأثیر زندگی و کنار هم بودن مردمی از فرهنگهای متفاوت بر دید آنها از یکدیگر و رویکرد آشنای سازمان ملل و جهان نسبت به زندگی مردمی که چشم و گوش به سمت کمترین اخبار بیرون از شهر و ناجیان احتمالی داشتند از نکات دیگر جالب توجه کتاب است.
در مجموع اگر به داستان جنگ و آن بخش از اروپای شرقی علاقه داشته باشید، کتاب میتواند برایتان جذاب باشد اما باید انتظارتان از توصیف موقعیتها و شرایط، شخصیتپردازیها، درگیر کردن خواننده با جزئیات احساسی و درونیات کاراکترها و در یک کلام زندگی کردن درون داستان پایین بیاورید.
November 28, 2017
A true story of two sisters from a large Muslim family living in Sarajevo, who recount their life after the disintegration of Yugoslavia and the subsequent attacks on Sarajevo by the Bosnian Serbs. Near starvation, lack of fuel and heating, lack of care and support from the Western world, lack of money, and lack of communications all contribute to a very unpleasant survival regime for the inhabitants of Sarajevo. The mother is trapped in Vienna, the only son is drafted into the army, and two of the sisters are moved to safety in Zagreb, Croatia. The family once close and supportive, is no longer the family they knew and loved. Extended family members are killed or wounded by mortar shell and snipers, their endeavours to rummage for sufficient nourishment, and fear and constant threat of death dominate their lives. I found it an excellent account of the terrifying challenges anyone under such extremes would face. Add to this the incredible chance encounters, the fortunes of being in the right place at the right time and an outcome that is totally surprising and beyond their wildest expectations.
March 22, 2016
The story is powerful - the experiences of a family of 10 dislocated by the Bosnia/Serbia civil war find themselves separated. Most are trapped in Sarajevo, the mother and one daughter are campaigning in Europe, two daughters are sent to Croatia to be safe and the eldest son has escaped from the army. Eventually they all escape and reunite in New Zealand thanks to the eldest daughter who marries a NZ photojournalist.
Narrated by the eldest daughter Atka and her then 12 year old sister Hana it tells of the horror of the conflict, the uncertainty of day to day life and how the kindness of strangers can be so powerful in others lives.
Narrated by the eldest daughter Atka and her then 12 year old sister Hana it tells of the horror of the conflict, the uncertainty of day to day life and how the kindness of strangers can be so powerful in others lives.
December 10, 2011
Being a refugee from the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 myself, I have read Atka's book with deep empathy. It brings us back not only to the time of the Ex Yugoslavian conflict, but shows also the absurdity of war and the hopelessness of the people having to endure it. This book can be read as a pars pro toto for so many human beings, going through a similar fate. Goodbye Sarajevo has besides its engaging contents also a very well structured narrative. I can highly recommend this book!
August 8, 2014
It was really a good one. I started to love Non Fiction...
July 25, 2021
Amazing true story, told by two sisters separated in the war... it all felt so crazy to me, that this happened when I was only a few years younger than the youngest sister, yet I’d heard nothing about it in school and only had the vaguest memory of reading Zlata’s Diary a couple of years later. I kept thinking I was reading a WWII book too and then they’d mention modern TV etc and I’d realise that no this was the 90s! Read also during Melbourne’s 4th lockdown and there were definite parallels in the story, about being separated from loved ones :(
May 27, 2021
Još jedna priča o ratnom Sarajevu, o izbjeglištvu i sudbinama ljudi prinuđenih da napuste svoja ognjišta. Svidjela mi se knjiga jer su opisi realni i životni puni emocija.
Read
September 17, 2012
byAtka ReidReview: This review is long over due. I had this book on my tablet as a preview book until I decided in mid-July a few days before my birthday that i really wanted the book. I was told i was allowed to purchase one book and so i did along with another book called Assignment Bosnia. It didn't take me long to finish the book as i was so engrossed with it. While reading the book I made notes to check spellings and meanings of words since some I didn't reconginze. I laughed at the good parts and cried at the parts where people were dying and getting wounded or when something happened within the family. The book is told from two sisters points of view one is Atka the oldest who marries a good New Zealand reporter. They met at a party that Atka went to while she was working as a translator. Before the war Atka was at University but it closed when the JNA(Yugoslav's People's Army-Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija) sieged Bosnia. War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1 March 1992 and 14 December 1995 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosnian_War
There family was huge it consisted of 10 children(**Children are in order of birth) Atka, Mesha, Lela, Nadia, Hana, Selma, Jana, Tarik and the twins(unsure of names) the parents, the father's mother, and the mother's mother i believe. The grandmother on the mom's side lives with the family and the dad usually had to go back and forth to see his mother, but at times the shelling was so terrible that he often had to stay with his mother for the night. There were also aunts and uncles who were spread out along Bosnia,Croatia and Serbia.
Hana
Only two children are allowed to leave. The middle children Nadia and Hana. They are are of an age where they understand what is going on but would not be help at home or with their mother and sister who are in Austria trying to get funding for Mother's of Bosnia. When the JNA took over the Bosnian Army the brother Mesha was caught in the middle and had no way to escape but he does. In the middle. Nadia and Hana are on their way to Croatia where they are to search for a business partner of their father's and/or uncle. While on the bus ride they are being targeted and when they come to a Serbian checkpoint they are made fun of; the officer says you won't be able to have cevapcici a traditional Eastern European dish which i had a pleasure of eating in mid-August for the first time. In English it's simply called Cevaps. A lot happens to Nadia and Hana while in Croatia. First they are treated as refugees when the arrive and have no money when a women approaches them asking if they would like to board with her. Since they have no money they are directed to a bus going to a stadium that has a camp full of refugees. Once they leave the sports center they walk to a hotel where an associate of their father is staying but he has gone to Germany for some time. An English man has helped them when the manager started giving them trouble. So the foreigner Christopher and Mladlena help them; they go to Rijeka until family friends return to Zagreb.(***reading this book gave me so much pleasure, I'm finally able to share a story that could of been my story had my mother and her family stayed in Croatia; back in the 70's there was a threat of war then, it didn't happen for another 23 years).
Atka
Back in Sarajevo the family lives on poor rations and packed in the basement when shelling is heavy. So the ones still at home are The Dad,Grandma, Atka,Selma, Jana, Tarik and the twins. During Atka's life Sarajevo had been a multicultural city that accepted all people Bosnian Muslims, Orthodox Serbians, Catholic Croatians and other foreigners. In May of 1993 the first massacre occured killing 22 people who were lined up for bread. One day Atka gets a job as a translator at a local radio station. She has to listen to newscast on tv that are in English and then translate them to Bosnian and report them live on the air. One day while she is at a party she mets a guy and he takes her all over the place so she translates for him. The program she translate is Voices of America. Mesha finally calls during a time when the shelling is heavy and Atka has to tell him to not do anything rash. He's escaped from the Army and will be in big trouble when he gets back to Sarajevo, escaping from the JNA is a very hard thing to do; it nearly gets you killed all able-bodied men over 18 are obligated to join the Army. In my evernote account this review is 3 pages long, I could add more but then I'd be giving the whole thing away. Any questions or if i didn't format something right let me know.
Note: *Above I was simply showing the translation of the title it was written in English. But it might be translated to other languages.
**Children are in order of birth.
*** A personal touch
June 12, 2023
Actually rate it 3 1/2 stars but Goodreads doesn’t let you. This book tells us an important story and it’s devastating this happened relatively recently.
The book itself was good but the switching of perspectives was a little repetitive. Atka’s pov was slightly more interesting.
Did not expect New Zealand to be in this book and kiwi characters, so that was interesting. Also, Atka’s and Hana’s parents decisions through this whole book was so bizarre to me and honestly felt like they did not speak much on it.
Overall, had really sad parts and was eye opening to hear a modern day war tale, the ending was also bittersweet and unexpected. Would recommend if you like this kind of stuff.
The book itself was good but the switching of perspectives was a little repetitive. Atka’s pov was slightly more interesting.
Did not expect New Zealand to be in this book and kiwi characters, so that was interesting. Also, Atka’s and Hana’s parents decisions through this whole book was so bizarre to me and honestly felt like they did not speak much on it.
Overall, had really sad parts and was eye opening to hear a modern day war tale, the ending was also bittersweet and unexpected. Would recommend if you like this kind of stuff.
July 21, 2025
5 ⭐ for the family's perseverance through such atrocities and for the kindness of those who helped save their lives.
August 7, 2011
This is a memoir by two sisters who had very different experiences during the siege of sarajevo and the war in Bosnia in the 1990s. Atka, a university student, finds herself the temporary mother of 6 of her young siblings when her mother is unable to return to Bosnia because of the war. Hana, another sister, is put on a refugee bus to Croatia, and sees out the war as a young refugee. The girls take turns with chapters, relating what was happening in their lives throughout the siege. For Atka it was the day to day struggles of feeding and caring for her family in a war torn city, where snipers made the gathering of water and food a deadly exercise - deadly for an Uncle, and leaving a young cousin terribly wounded. Hana, meanwhile, is young, desparately missing her family (anotehr sister, Nadia, accompanied her) and forced to make decisions and deal with the difficulties of refugee life.
I'd seen the book in bookshops and while interested, resisted reading it. The cruelty and utter stupidity of this war, where a European nation descended into tribal fighting, is not something I want to read about. I feel the West failed the people of Sarajevo, and sometimes I just don't want to read unhappy stories.
But I heard an interview with the authors on the radio, and decided I'd borrow the book from the library and only read what happened when they left Bosnia and came to New Zealand (that's not a spoiler, I'm pretty sure the blurb tells you that). I wanted to read about how you adapt to a life in a totally different culture, a different language, how you deal with a traumatic past. But sadly, the book didn't really go into that. I'm still dying to know - I want to know what happened to everyone in the family, and whether they travel back to Bosnia now.
I did actually read the whole book in the end. It wasn't too full of atrocities, but it's still an uneasy read of racial nastiness, UN ineffectiveness and life in a war zone. I'm eternally grateful to live in NZ, and just wish there was more I could do for the rest of the world.
I'd seen the book in bookshops and while interested, resisted reading it. The cruelty and utter stupidity of this war, where a European nation descended into tribal fighting, is not something I want to read about. I feel the West failed the people of Sarajevo, and sometimes I just don't want to read unhappy stories.
But I heard an interview with the authors on the radio, and decided I'd borrow the book from the library and only read what happened when they left Bosnia and came to New Zealand (that's not a spoiler, I'm pretty sure the blurb tells you that). I wanted to read about how you adapt to a life in a totally different culture, a different language, how you deal with a traumatic past. But sadly, the book didn't really go into that. I'm still dying to know - I want to know what happened to everyone in the family, and whether they travel back to Bosnia now.
I did actually read the whole book in the end. It wasn't too full of atrocities, but it's still an uneasy read of racial nastiness, UN ineffectiveness and life in a war zone. I'm eternally grateful to live in NZ, and just wish there was more I could do for the rest of the world.
July 7, 2015
‘The tragedy of war.’
The city of Sarajevo was besieged, from April 1992, for 1425 days. During that period more than 13,000 people, from a population of fewer than 500,000, were killed.
Atka Reid and Hana Schofield are two of the survivors of this war, and in this book they tell their story of survival. Atka, then aged 21, was the eldest child in a family of ten, and remained in Sarajevo to look after the younger children. Two of her sisters, Hana then aged 12 and Nadia then aged 15, were put onto one of the last of the United Nations buses to leave the city. They hoped that their separation would be short.
But life as refugees has its own hardships: survival outside Sarajevo with little money and with few friends was tough. Those left behind were in desperate straits: an uncle was killed queuing for bread, a cousin lost his leg. Constant bombardment destroyed buildings and infrastructure, snipers made any movement around the city difficult and fuel, food and water were scarce.
In alternate chapters throughout the book, Atka and Hana recount their experiences. They also touch on the experiences of other family members which provides a number of different perspectives. Amidst the horror, Atka, Hana and Nadia each experience kindness and decency. Atka meets a New Zealand photojournalist, Andrew Reid. Hana and Nadia make it to Croatia, where they are cared for by a family in Zagreb.
Reading this account brings home the desperation and the horror of the situation in Sarajevo. The war in the former Yugoslavia pitted Serbs and Croats against Bosnians, Muslims against Christians and neighbours against neighbours. Atka and Hana’s account is important. It is an account of one family’s struggle but it is also a reminder of how fragile the veneer of civilization can be.
Atka and Hana both now live in New Zealand. The efforts of Andrew Reid’s parents made it possible for their entire family to join them as part of the first intake of Bosnian refugees to New Zealand.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
The city of Sarajevo was besieged, from April 1992, for 1425 days. During that period more than 13,000 people, from a population of fewer than 500,000, were killed.
Atka Reid and Hana Schofield are two of the survivors of this war, and in this book they tell their story of survival. Atka, then aged 21, was the eldest child in a family of ten, and remained in Sarajevo to look after the younger children. Two of her sisters, Hana then aged 12 and Nadia then aged 15, were put onto one of the last of the United Nations buses to leave the city. They hoped that their separation would be short.
But life as refugees has its own hardships: survival outside Sarajevo with little money and with few friends was tough. Those left behind were in desperate straits: an uncle was killed queuing for bread, a cousin lost his leg. Constant bombardment destroyed buildings and infrastructure, snipers made any movement around the city difficult and fuel, food and water were scarce.
In alternate chapters throughout the book, Atka and Hana recount their experiences. They also touch on the experiences of other family members which provides a number of different perspectives. Amidst the horror, Atka, Hana and Nadia each experience kindness and decency. Atka meets a New Zealand photojournalist, Andrew Reid. Hana and Nadia make it to Croatia, where they are cared for by a family in Zagreb.
Reading this account brings home the desperation and the horror of the situation in Sarajevo. The war in the former Yugoslavia pitted Serbs and Croats against Bosnians, Muslims against Christians and neighbours against neighbours. Atka and Hana’s account is important. It is an account of one family’s struggle but it is also a reminder of how fragile the veneer of civilization can be.
Atka and Hana both now live in New Zealand. The efforts of Andrew Reid’s parents made it possible for their entire family to join them as part of the first intake of Bosnian refugees to New Zealand.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
April 2, 2017
Fantastic read, because of the insight it gave into the experience of Bosnians during the conflict of the 90's. But I also found it very moving in terms of capturing the experience of any refugee. The trauma, fear, and sadness at having to leave the place they've grown up and loved, but also their bravery. I don't think that's necessarily captured in the current portrayal of refugees. I also found it amazing that so many people across Croatia and the rest of the world welcomed the refugees into their own homes. The human element aside, it was also interesting to read more about the war that effected Bosnia, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, places we've travelled through peaceful times 20 years later. But I remember hearing about war in Bosnia while in primary school, and didn't really have an understanding of what was happening. The writing style wasn't very sophisticated, which is fair enough given the story is a personal account by two sisters, based on their journal entries throughout the conflict. So if you put that aside, it's an excellent read.
October 18, 2011
This is the true story of two sisters who have very different experiences during the siege of Sarajevo. Hana, as a twelve year old, is sent as a refugee to Croatia, and Atka, her twenty one year old sister, stays in war-torn Sarajevo to help look after her younger siblings.
In many ways this is such a sad story, the conflict in Bosnia becomes a lot more real as the sisters both describe their different circumstances, and how each survived a bitter and bloody conflict. The separation was only meant to last a few weeks, but as the siege continued, hope of reconciliation became more and more remote.
Atka eventually finds work as a translator in a local radio station in Sarajevo, and then for a photojournalist from New Zealand. This meeting eventually leads to a much happier future for the whole family.
It is hard to believe that in this day and age such a brutal tribal war could last for as long as it did, and the book also highlights the inefficiencies of the UN.
In many ways this is such a sad story, the conflict in Bosnia becomes a lot more real as the sisters both describe their different circumstances, and how each survived a bitter and bloody conflict. The separation was only meant to last a few weeks, but as the siege continued, hope of reconciliation became more and more remote.
Atka eventually finds work as a translator in a local radio station in Sarajevo, and then for a photojournalist from New Zealand. This meeting eventually leads to a much happier future for the whole family.
It is hard to believe that in this day and age such a brutal tribal war could last for as long as it did, and the book also highlights the inefficiencies of the UN.
November 28, 2011
This is a beautiful story of two sisters' experiences during the Bosnian War, one as a refugee in Croatia and the other trapped in war torn Sarajevo. This book ticks all the boxes for me- it's one of those rare books that I could not tear myself away from - full of adventure, tragedy, humour and even a little bit of (well written) romance. It is also extremely informative as it gives the reader a glimpse into the lives of those caught up in this dreadful war. This is a war that I did not know very much about (prior to reading this book) and in my opinion there is lack of literary material about these very important stories. What I found most surprising about this book though, is that despite its subject matter, you finish it feeling uplifted rather than depressed. In the end this book is about love, survival and how small acts of kindness can have a profound impact upon peoples' lives. You must read it!!!
August 26, 2012
Wow! what the hell was I doing during those years? All I remember about the Bosnian war was that I caught the tail end of it on the news. The part where the Serbs were leaving. I remember thinking 'holy shit I wonder what the hell happened over there?!'. I never followed the news back at that time therefore I was completely oblivious to what was going on in Yugoslavia.
This book was amazing! A true story about a Bosnian family's survival during the siege of Sarajevo in the early 1990s. Written by two sisters giving us insight on ones experience on the inside of Sarajevo and anothers experience on the outside of Sarajevo. It is sad yet courageous, inspiring, heartfelt and very uplifting involving a Kiwi family's steadfast intention to get the whole family to New Zealand.
It is hard to believe that in this day and age such a brutal war could last for as long as it did, and the book also highlights the inefficiencies of the UN.
This book was amazing! A true story about a Bosnian family's survival during the siege of Sarajevo in the early 1990s. Written by two sisters giving us insight on ones experience on the inside of Sarajevo and anothers experience on the outside of Sarajevo. It is sad yet courageous, inspiring, heartfelt and very uplifting involving a Kiwi family's steadfast intention to get the whole family to New Zealand.
It is hard to believe that in this day and age such a brutal war could last for as long as it did, and the book also highlights the inefficiencies of the UN.
April 6, 2012
Great book to help learn about the ins and outs of everyday life in Sarajevo during the Siege. I've been absorbedly passionate about Bosnia since studying and writing history essays about the Siege in 1992. Having traveled to Sarajevo post-Siege, I can unequivocally say the city is magical, and the people's spirit equally so. The city has an an amazing mix of Bosniak, Catholic and Jewish people ... a vibrant culture of music, art and nightlife, a fantastic cafe scene (oh how they love their coffee and sweets), and is one of the most fun "walking" cities I've ever experienced. Coming out the other side of the War, thanks to the 1995 Dayton Accords, I hope this country and people continue to heal and shine - it really is the best. Goodbye Sarajevo gives really good insight into a terribly tragic time for the Bosnian people post Tito's Yugoslavia.
November 27, 2018
بسمـ الله...
یه کتاب جدید و یه موضوع متفاوت از همه ی کتابهای قبلی، کتاب #خداحافظ_سارایوو و موضوع جنگ بوسنی. .
کتاب، ماجرای یک خانواده ی بوسنیایی رو روایت میکنه که در طی محاصره مجبور میشن از هم جدا بشن و با سختیهای مختلفی د��ت و پنجه نرم میکنن. این داستان بصورت موازی و از زبان هانا و آتکای نوجوان که مجبور هستن خانواده رو ترک کنند، روایت میشه.
تو مسیر کتاب، با داستان زندگی هانا و آتکا همراه شدم،
دردشون رو حس کردم،
تلخی طعم زندگی یک خانواده ی جنگزده، در یک کشور تحت محاصره رو چشیدم،
تونستم ببینم که موقع جنگ، در گوشه کنار بعضی از کوچه ها و خیابونای #سارایوو چه میگذشت،
از جنگ بوسنی یاد گرفتم،
با فرهنگ مسلمانهای اونجا آشنا شدم،
و... .
اما نتیجه ی جانبی دیگه ای هم مطالعه ش برام داشت، و اونهم اینکه فرصتی برام فراهم کرد تا از زاویه ی جدیدی به جنگ هشت ساله ی ایران و رژیم بعث عراق نگاه کنم.
برای علاقمندای به کسب اطلاعات بیشتر در مورد جنگ بوسنی، کتاب جذابی خواهد بود.
یه کتاب جدید و یه موضوع متفاوت از همه ی کتابهای قبلی، کتاب #خداحافظ_سارایوو و موضوع جنگ بوسنی. .
کتاب، ماجرای یک خانواده ی بوسنیایی رو روایت میکنه که در طی محاصره مجبور میشن از هم جدا بشن و با سختیهای مختلفی د��ت و پنجه نرم میکنن. این داستان بصورت موازی و از زبان هانا و آتکای نوجوان که مجبور هستن خانواده رو ترک کنند، روایت میشه.
تو مسیر کتاب، با داستان زندگی هانا و آتکا همراه شدم،
دردشون رو حس کردم،
تلخی طعم زندگی یک خانواده ی جنگزده، در یک کشور تحت محاصره رو چشیدم،
تونستم ببینم که موقع جنگ، در گوشه کنار بعضی از کوچه ها و خیابونای #سارایوو چه میگذشت،
از جنگ بوسنی یاد گرفتم،
با فرهنگ مسلمانهای اونجا آشنا شدم،
و... .
اما نتیجه ی جانبی دیگه ای هم مطالعه ش برام داشت، و اونهم اینکه فرصتی برام فراهم کرد تا از زاویه ی جدیدی به جنگ هشت ساله ی ایران و رژیم بعث عراق نگاه کنم.
برای علاقمندای به کسب اطلاعات بیشتر در مورد جنگ بوسنی، کتاب جذابی خواهد بود.
November 27, 2011
I'm not a big reader - but I couldn't put this down. Being of Croatian descent it was interesting to read of life as a Bosnian living in Sarajevo and surrounded by the Serbs. This doesn't get into the politics of it all but rather tells you how it really was. I had read the book after visiting Sarajevo earlier in the year and it was fanastic as I could visualise where they were talking about and truly get it! What was also great was the account from both sides - the sister that stayed behind and the one that was able to flee Sarajevo.
This really is a story of courage, love and survival! How these ladies have turned out so 'normal' is a miracle and a further sign of their strength. Let us hope that history is not repeated.
Enjoy this read.
This really is a story of courage, love and survival! How these ladies have turned out so 'normal' is a miracle and a further sign of their strength. Let us hope that history is not repeated.
Enjoy this read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 216 reviews