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My Childhood Under Fire: A Sarajevo Diary
"Bombs are exploding all over the city. I hide my feelings from everyone, but I am drowning in despair. When will this war end? For how long will my life consist of the dead space between two explosions?" -- June 6, 1995 On the first day of the siege of Sarajevo, 12-year-old Nadja Halilbegovich's life changed forever. In the face of constant tank and sniper fire, daily life in this beautiful, mountain-ringed city was suddenly full of fear. Without reliable electricity, water or medical supplies, the blockaded city ground to a halt. Nadja and her fellow citizens tried desperately to live normal lives while forced to scrounge for even the most basic necessities. My Childhood Under Fire is Nadja's diary of the years 1992?95. It is her personal account of becoming a teenager during wartime. It is also a monument to the thousands killed during the siege of Sarajevo and to the millions of children around the world who still live -- and die -- under fire.
120 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2006
7 people are currently reading
202 people want to read
About the author
Nadja Halilbegovich
1 book4 followersSince gaining international recognition for her diaries of life in wartime Bosnia, Nadja Halilbegovich has spoken to and performed choral concerts for audiences throughout North America and Europe. As a thirteen-year-old, she was nearly killed when, upon leaving her house to play for the first time in six months, a bomb exploded seven feet from her.
During the war, she hosted "Music Box," a program on the National Radio Station of Bosnia, and performed in internationally broadcast solo and choir performances. Her diaries have been published in Bosnia and Turkey. She now lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.
During the war, she hosted "Music Box," a program on the National Radio Station of Bosnia, and performed in internationally broadcast solo and choir performances. Her diaries have been published in Bosnia and Turkey. She now lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
June 16, 2007
I am a horrible person, but I didn't really care for this book. The problem is my expectations were very high -- the blurb (naturally) likened the book to the Diary of Anne Frank, which I remembered as being quite engaging and real. Anne was pouring out her feelings and incidentally she was in the middle of a very dramatic situation. Nadja is, I am sure, a delightful young woman, and the situation must have been very dramatic and dreadful, but the diary reveals very little about the quiet and petty moments of Childhood Under Fire and instead seems to consist mainly of melodramatic and undeveloped adolescent outbursts that might as well just be "I am a child!!!! Under fire!!!!!" Her participation in her choir and in radio broadcasts are described so briefly that they sound unpleasantly like boasting, leaving me with the impression that as soon as the war started she decided she had better start her diary if she wanted to be renowned as the Bosnian Anne Frank, but then couldn't be bothered to include the human flaws and details.
The "looking back" sections that add fuller detail to some of the events from an adult perspective are more interesting and developed.
The "looking back" sections that add fuller detail to some of the events from an adult perspective are more interesting and developed.
October 21, 2021
I read this aloud to my husband and we were both falling asleep about a page into it every time, so we do not recommend it as a read aloud, even in the middle of the day! However, we persevered. Halilbegovich reports in a few sentences to a few paragraphs what is happening every now and then over the 3 years that she was trapped in Sarajevo where a war was happening. She reports the constant shelling, explosions, deaths, mutilations, and deprivations of daily life for those who stayed. She laments often that other people, in other countries, live their lives oblivious to what was happening there, and I most certainly was. She was only 3 years older than me, and with the date in each entry, I remembered probably what I was doing at the time, and sadly, I didn't even know Bosnia was a country let alone having a civil war/being invaded. That was pretty eye opening.
Both my husband and I are interested enough to read some objective texts about the war rather than first hand accounts because we are not grasping the larger context of the war. Halilbegovich specifically uses the word genocide but never mentions any ethnic groups or prejudices or reason at all for the fighting, so a reader does need to have prior knowledge or seek out the contextual information. It is kind of frustrating to read these accounts because it's really impossible to imagine.
With the Diary of Anne Frank, Anne explains the rules they have to follow to survive, and yes, the reader sees how difficult it is to maintain. They are hiding, and if they are discovered, they will be killed. And you get attached to her and her hiding mates/family members, identifying with her as a person.
With both accounts I've recently read about this war in Bosnia, the families retreat to basements with other people to avoid getting killed in their own homes by what apparently was random bombing and shooting at almost all times for 3 years, but they get tired of being confined to the home and go outside and then get blown up or see their friends and neighbors get blown up right in front of them. People still go to work and there's a pretty good chance they'll get killed that day, yet they go. Kids get together and sing for peace in public; sometimes they get wiped out by bombs, and other times they do not; the same for school. Many diary entries have her going to school and choir practice and other entries have her complaining that they can never leave their apartment. Some mention that she has had no contact with family outside of the home since the war began and other entries talk about the birthday party they had with family who came across town to celebrate with them. It is often times confusing and contradictory and what's missing is larger context but also a real personal connection with Nadja.
I want to cry over the situation in Bosnia in the 90's. I'm still looking for that book; beginning with personal accounts was not a good method to learn about this tragic history.
Both my husband and I are interested enough to read some objective texts about the war rather than first hand accounts because we are not grasping the larger context of the war. Halilbegovich specifically uses the word genocide but never mentions any ethnic groups or prejudices or reason at all for the fighting, so a reader does need to have prior knowledge or seek out the contextual information. It is kind of frustrating to read these accounts because it's really impossible to imagine.
With the Diary of Anne Frank, Anne explains the rules they have to follow to survive, and yes, the reader sees how difficult it is to maintain. They are hiding, and if they are discovered, they will be killed. And you get attached to her and her hiding mates/family members, identifying with her as a person.
With both accounts I've recently read about this war in Bosnia, the families retreat to basements with other people to avoid getting killed in their own homes by what apparently was random bombing and shooting at almost all times for 3 years, but they get tired of being confined to the home and go outside and then get blown up or see their friends and neighbors get blown up right in front of them. People still go to work and there's a pretty good chance they'll get killed that day, yet they go. Kids get together and sing for peace in public; sometimes they get wiped out by bombs, and other times they do not; the same for school. Many diary entries have her going to school and choir practice and other entries have her complaining that they can never leave their apartment. Some mention that she has had no contact with family outside of the home since the war began and other entries talk about the birthday party they had with family who came across town to celebrate with them. It is often times confusing and contradictory and what's missing is larger context but also a real personal connection with Nadja.
I want to cry over the situation in Bosnia in the 90's. I'm still looking for that book; beginning with personal accounts was not a good method to learn about this tragic history.
May 20, 2016
Nadja Halilbegovich was barely twelve years old when, during the Bosnian war, the infamous siege of her city Sarajevo began. A clever and talented child, she decided then to start writing about what she was going through. The result, this diary ('my only place of peace amid the chaos') is obviously an harrowing testimony of the experience of children having to endure the atrocities of a besieged city in times of armed conflicts. It is, also, in its simplicity and touching naivety a compelling indictment against the failure of the international community to prevent such a tragedy:
'No one in the world seems willing to save the people of Bosnia from extermination.' (October 1, 1992)
'They say that thirteen thousand children have been killed in my country. Yet the world remains silent.' (November 10, 1992)
You get it, her incomprehension and childish attempts at making sense of what was then going on makes for more than a moving read: it will resonate like an haunting shame.
Now, far from me the will to compare the tragic experiences of one over the other but, I must say, I prefer it to Zlata's Diary: A Child's Life in Wartime Sarajevo -another journal also written by a teenage girl (Zlata Filipovich) during the same siege. Nadja Halilbegovich's entries are indeed shorter, more straightforward and, feel therefore more spontaneous. She also intersperse them with comments written years later, giving them thus that extra insight that comes with time.
Then again, a difficult read but a voice that needs to be heard.
'No one in the world seems willing to save the people of Bosnia from extermination.' (October 1, 1992)
'They say that thirteen thousand children have been killed in my country. Yet the world remains silent.' (November 10, 1992)
You get it, her incomprehension and childish attempts at making sense of what was then going on makes for more than a moving read: it will resonate like an haunting shame.
Now, far from me the will to compare the tragic experiences of one over the other but, I must say, I prefer it to Zlata's Diary: A Child's Life in Wartime Sarajevo -another journal also written by a teenage girl (Zlata Filipovich) during the same siege. Nadja Halilbegovich's entries are indeed shorter, more straightforward and, feel therefore more spontaneous. She also intersperse them with comments written years later, giving them thus that extra insight that comes with time.
Then again, a difficult read but a voice that needs to be heard.
February 2, 2012
I specifically chose this novel for a unit on portrayals of war in children's literature since I know nothing about the war in Bosnia because I was kind of too young at the time. However, I still know nothing about it - how it started, why it started, who was involved, if it was even resolved. There is absolutely no explanation given in the book for the situation, and this is a glaring omission. Children reading this book will most likely be confused, and a small forward or afterward would have been incredibly valuable. The book also suffers from the author's trite writing. Yes, she's a teenager when she's writing the book, and most teenagers are poor writers, so maybe that means this journal shouldn't have been published. If the book had more real information, whether about the war or the author's life, it would have been better, but almost every entry includes a cliched sentence about the world's children, and it's just bad. Moreover, the author mentions several times the choir she participated in, and her appearances on national radio programs, and they read like she's trying to show off, and makes the journal feel like a big publicity stunt that was always intended for publication.
August 22, 2012
Great book! Loved the insight of a child living in war. It is not a book that explains the Bosnian War, but an important book if you want to make a heart connection. This book will spring board into other reading about the Bosnian War.
Thank you Nadja for sharing your journal with the world - it touched my heart!
Thank you Nadja for sharing your journal with the world - it touched my heart!
October 21, 2007
This diary explains the war in Sarajevo at the level that middle schoolers could relate well with. It is not too graphic but gets the point across about the war. It is also interesting how the author incorporates the real journal with vignettes written now looking back at her life then.
July 21, 2023
I believe all memoirs of war and difficult times should be rated 4-5 stars simply because their subject matter is so important. This easy to read diary is a great introduction to those who maybe don’t know much about the war in Bosnia and Sarajevo or how it affected particularly children. As I have a wider knowledge about the subject I found it a bit repetitive at times but it was a live diary of a child at a time, so it makes sense. I learned some new things thanks to Nadja’s diary.
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October 22, 2021A quick read - but one that I shall visit again.
How can one critique a teen's diary about genocide? It gives a true reflection of how she felt - how many teens, children, and adults, must feel - during times of war.
Sad, yet sprinkled with hope.
How can one critique a teen's diary about genocide? It gives a true reflection of how she felt - how many teens, children, and adults, must feel - during times of war.
Sad, yet sprinkled with hope.
November 17, 2021
The diary leads the reader, day by day, through the war of former Yugoslavia in the city of Sarajevo. The point of of view is from a girl (aged 12 through 16) living in a storm of bullets and bombs, hunger and thirst, physical and emotional pain. The writing is simple but powerful.
August 13, 2019
Heartbreaking and terrifying. To read what the author lived through is just unbelievable. Told in a diary format in her own words it paints a vivid picture of life in a war zone.
February 1, 2023
this diary under fire makes real the experiences of children, teens and families in Ukraine today---or indeed any group targeted in war they have no control over.
March 4, 2023
It’s a must read!
This diary turned book gives a 2 year experience of what the author went through during the war in her hometown. Lots of tears shed.
This diary turned book gives a 2 year experience of what the author went through during the war in her hometown. Lots of tears shed.
December 27, 2025
Reading this felt like watching resilience form in real time. The fear is constant, but so is her determination to keep going and stay human. It’s devastating without being hopeless.
December 15, 2024
This reading in 4 key points 💥📒🎸
✨ It's a journal, written during war: obviously reminiscent of The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. However, that's the only common point.
✨ Sarajevo's war is more similar to today's war than Nazi's war: it's a portrayal of a city that has been *sometimes* protected by the NATO's armed presence, the daily-life and disruptions of promised cease-of-fire, the Russian roulette that surrounded every outing for a possible death. With so many wars in the recent years - Ukraine-Russia, Gaza-Israel ... - I imagine this diary being a better reflection of the insights of someone living under the threats of bombs than someone living under the threat of being discovered in its own country. Regardless, it's a war account, one that does show how easy - and incomprehensible - the reasons to start a war are, how long, and difficult is it to stop it, and how deep are the wounds caused during it.
✨ Details of the political beginnings and ending of the war are not discussed in the diary - in a sense, it's a pure reflection of the type of adult the youngster aspire to be. She became a speaker, performer and peace activist, each of those appear in her diary that reflects the prism to which she sees life. Instead, she focuses on the inaction of NATO, the persistence of celebrating the landmarks of life (birthdays, mother's day...) and how society organized itself to keep educating its kids, doing music..). The "throw-back" reflections of the adult Nadja adds elements that are very interesting, mixing the writing ages.
✨ The impressive combativeness of the whole family: a mother that does 6km in dangerous zone to get back her daughter's guitar before she leaves to a foster family in the US, a brother working as translator for the UN, a father cooking snails and covering them as mushrooms.
✨ It's a journal, written during war: obviously reminiscent of The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. However, that's the only common point.
✨ Sarajevo's war is more similar to today's war than Nazi's war: it's a portrayal of a city that has been *sometimes* protected by the NATO's armed presence, the daily-life and disruptions of promised cease-of-fire, the Russian roulette that surrounded every outing for a possible death. With so many wars in the recent years - Ukraine-Russia, Gaza-Israel ... - I imagine this diary being a better reflection of the insights of someone living under the threats of bombs than someone living under the threat of being discovered in its own country. Regardless, it's a war account, one that does show how easy - and incomprehensible - the reasons to start a war are, how long, and difficult is it to stop it, and how deep are the wounds caused during it.
✨ Details of the political beginnings and ending of the war are not discussed in the diary - in a sense, it's a pure reflection of the type of adult the youngster aspire to be. She became a speaker, performer and peace activist, each of those appear in her diary that reflects the prism to which she sees life. Instead, she focuses on the inaction of NATO, the persistence of celebrating the landmarks of life (birthdays, mother's day...) and how society organized itself to keep educating its kids, doing music..). The "throw-back" reflections of the adult Nadja adds elements that are very interesting, mixing the writing ages.
✨ The impressive combativeness of the whole family: a mother that does 6km in dangerous zone to get back her daughter's guitar before she leaves to a foster family in the US, a brother working as translator for the UN, a father cooking snails and covering them as mushrooms.
September 13, 2016
"My Childhood Under Fire" by Nadja Halilbegovich is about Nadja's life during the war in her country, and how she, and her family survived, about who had lost their lives, and the struggle to stay alive. It told how she finally escaped the war. She is the main character; others are Sanel her brother, and mother, and father.
I personally really liked the book because it taught me so much about what it is like to live as a civilian in a war while people are being killed and there is combat so close to you. I also learned about how hard it is to survive with such minimal resources, and all the opportunities she missed out on because of the war. This book also taught me a lesson that it is not always easy to stay positive but if you try, it is better than feeling down.
I would recommend this book to people that can handle sad details about the war, like death, blood, and sadness. I would also recommend this book to people that want to learn about what it is like to be inside of a war, people that can read and want to read books like this, I believe would enjoy this book.
I personally really liked the book because it taught me so much about what it is like to live as a civilian in a war while people are being killed and there is combat so close to you. I also learned about how hard it is to survive with such minimal resources, and all the opportunities she missed out on because of the war. This book also taught me a lesson that it is not always easy to stay positive but if you try, it is better than feeling down.
I would recommend this book to people that can handle sad details about the war, like death, blood, and sadness. I would also recommend this book to people that want to learn about what it is like to be inside of a war, people that can read and want to read books like this, I believe would enjoy this book.
February 13, 2008
This book was drawn from the author's diary spanning her 12 - 15 year old years in Sarajevo. I liked how the author wrote inserts in some of her chapters looking back at this time. It starts out fascinating with the reflections of a 12 year old girl trying to make sense out of her world crumbling around her. She mentions the atrocities she has witnessed or heard about and in the same diary entries she talks about having fun with neighbors and practicing her guitar. The tone of the entries darken as she gets older and her hopes of the war ending are bashed time and again. I was inspired to learn more about what happened in Sarajevo starting in 1992. I looked online and read more about the last zoo animal dying - a brown bear who had already consumed her cage mates. This was heartbreaking - I know I should be more moved by stories about people but the idea of all the animals dying in the zoo and zookeepers risking their lives to try (unsuccessfully) to keep them alive was sickening. This event is just mentioned briefly in Nadja's diary, but it really struck me.
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July 7, 2010My Childhood Under Fire: A Sarajevo Diary by Nadja Halilbegovich was an intimate look at a child's perspective of war in Bosnia. It brings to mind The Diary of Anne Frank, but much more simplified and with a different type of danger. I could hear the fear in her words, but it didn't quite have the same affect as Anne Frank's words. I think this is a great introduction to another culture and to a child's view of war. I think it is worth reading and the fact that it is true will make an impact on young readers. I think this would be a good read for all ages and it may stimulate older readers to look for more information on Sarajevo or other diaries from real kids and teens.
November 25, 2010
What a moving story. I would have liked to see some maps of the country to put in perspective for students. A little background information about the Yugoslav War would have been good, even if only appended at the end. The photographs help to see that Nadja is a person, just like us. I may order this for the school simply because so many are interested in war. It is a worthy purchase for people to see how children (and adults) suffer during a war. We are so far removed from in in our country.
December 9, 2014
NON FICTION
Nadja is just 12 years olf when war breaks out in her country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The book is a journal of what she wrote during the war with some adult reflections and flashbacks to add more facts. Nadja is very concerned about the unnecessary deaths of all the children of her country and she wonders why the world is not helping them. The book ends with Nadja and her mother escaping through a tunnel for Nadja to go to America, then the adult Nadja reflects on the war and how it was not necessary for all the death of all the children ad people of her country.
Nadja is just 12 years olf when war breaks out in her country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The book is a journal of what she wrote during the war with some adult reflections and flashbacks to add more facts. Nadja is very concerned about the unnecessary deaths of all the children of her country and she wonders why the world is not helping them. The book ends with Nadja and her mother escaping through a tunnel for Nadja to go to America, then the adult Nadja reflects on the war and how it was not necessary for all the death of all the children ad people of her country.
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December 4, 2010Truthfully if i saw that book i wouldnt read it. its not my type of book. but i had to read a nonfiction book for school and i choose this one not really caring. but its one of the best books i have ever read
March 22, 2021
Buku ini tidak terlalu sulit dibaca, tapi aku merasa penulis tidak bisa sampaikan pesan tentang toleransi dan kedamaian dengan baik. Sambil baca buku ini, aku tidak merasa apa-apa, bahkan aku pikir pengalamannya lebih bagus daripada orang-orang lain yang tidak punya rumah, makanan, keluarga.
February 28, 2016
Was not sure about this diary standing on it's own when compared to The Diary of Anne Frank but it did. Many similarities and differences. A cautionary reminder of the tragedies of senseless wars. Sadly brings current world events to mind..
JUV NF
JUV NF
March 21, 2016
I was 15/16 when the war in Bosnia was going on and I did not realize the severity of it until I read this first-person account of Nadja's life during that time.
Eye-opening and heart wrenching.
Sheds a light on the long-lasting effect war has on children.
Eye-opening and heart wrenching.
Sheds a light on the long-lasting effect war has on children.
August 7, 2008
omg this is such a great book like the first few pages already get you it's so good so far this girl has beent through a lot and she's only twelve!
May 20, 2017
Her frustration at the futility of fighting is tangible!
November 11, 2007
Diary format tells the story of a 12-year-old girl in Sarajevo in the early 90s. She lives through the war and escapes to America.
March 23, 2010
i loved this book i think it was very sad!!!!! you guys should read it!!!!!
July 21, 2010
An ok book recounting a girl's experiences in Sarajevo.
November 27, 2012
Nadja keeps a diary during the war in Sarajevo in the 1990's.
March 3, 2014
I would recommend this book. Her life was very different from how we are growing up today. I can only imagine the fear she lived through.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews