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War Childhood: Voices from Sarajevo for Our Times
In this unforgettable book of 1,000+ quotes and 20 full-page color photos, adults reflect on their childhoods in war.
In 2010, Sarajevo native Jasminko Halilovic began following through on a collecting as many short recollections from as many people as possible who were children during the Bosnian War, which from 1992 to 1995 claimed the lives of 101,000 people amid the breakup of the former Yugoslavia and changed Sarajevo's reputation from a onetime WInter Olympics paradise to a city under siege. The a unique, visually engaging, and accessible book of 1,100 quotations by adults looking back on their childhoods in war. Halilovic collected the memories online, using the project's website and social media.
The book, War Childhood , was crowd-funded and published in Bosnian in Sarajevo, and in English translation for sale at the museum of the same name—the War Childhood Museum—that Halilovic founded in his native city in January 2017.
The book has four parts. The first comprises Halivovic's introductory essays on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, the siege of Sarajevo, and the project. The second, main section is a mosaic of the short recollections gathered during implementation of the project. The third is Halivovic's conclusion introducing the War Childhood Museum. while the fourth, final section has a visual focus, bringing together photographs, drawings, diary entries, stories, and letters.
Unique in having been cocreated by 1,100 people, this book also takes a specific approach to the presentation of their memories. The memories collected in the book are presented symmetrically. They are grouped both by theme and by emotion. Some entries from the different groups are mixed, but they are distributed in accord with a precisely calculated algorithm. In this way, a balance is struck between emotion and theme.
War Childhood is for anyone seeking an accessible, ultimately hopeful book on the effects of war on children—and, moreover, it is an indispensable reference for researchers and students in the fields of conflict studies and peacebuilding, history, childhood and adolescence, psychology and trauma, Eastern European studies, and mental health.
In 2010, Sarajevo native Jasminko Halilovic began following through on a collecting as many short recollections from as many people as possible who were children during the Bosnian War, which from 1992 to 1995 claimed the lives of 101,000 people amid the breakup of the former Yugoslavia and changed Sarajevo's reputation from a onetime WInter Olympics paradise to a city under siege. The a unique, visually engaging, and accessible book of 1,100 quotations by adults looking back on their childhoods in war. Halilovic collected the memories online, using the project's website and social media.
The book, War Childhood , was crowd-funded and published in Bosnian in Sarajevo, and in English translation for sale at the museum of the same name—the War Childhood Museum—that Halilovic founded in his native city in January 2017.
The book has four parts. The first comprises Halivovic's introductory essays on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Sarajevo, the siege of Sarajevo, and the project. The second, main section is a mosaic of the short recollections gathered during implementation of the project. The third is Halivovic's conclusion introducing the War Childhood Museum. while the fourth, final section has a visual focus, bringing together photographs, drawings, diary entries, stories, and letters.
Unique in having been cocreated by 1,100 people, this book also takes a specific approach to the presentation of their memories. The memories collected in the book are presented symmetrically. They are grouped both by theme and by emotion. Some entries from the different groups are mixed, but they are distributed in accord with a precisely calculated algorithm. In this way, a balance is struck between emotion and theme.
War Childhood is for anyone seeking an accessible, ultimately hopeful book on the effects of war on children—and, moreover, it is an indispensable reference for researchers and students in the fields of conflict studies and peacebuilding, history, childhood and adolescence, psychology and trauma, Eastern European studies, and mental health.
- GenresHistory
288 pages, Paperback
First published February 5, 2013
7 people are currently reading
92 people want to read
About the author
Jasminko Halilović
2 books9 followersJasminko Halilovic was born in 1988 in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Jasminko Halilovic is the Founder and Director-General of the War Childhood Museum (WCM), the world's only museum dedicated to the experiences of children affected by war. The WCM received the Council of Europe Museum Prize as part of the European Museum of the Year program.
Jasminko has written and edited several books, including "Sarajevo – My City, a Place to Meet" and the award-winning "War Childhood," translated into six languages. He holds a master's degree in financial management and is pursuing a PhD in museum management.
He has served as a keynote speaker at conferences in over 15 countries on museums, peacebuilding, and entrepreneurship. Jasminko frequently presents and lectures at universities worldwide and has contributed to outlets like The Huffington Post, Asahi Shimbun, and Politico.
In 2018, Halilovic became the first Bosnian in Forbes’ Europe “30 under 30” list, and in 2023, he was named a European Young Leader (EYL40).
An entrepreneur since age 16, Jasminko co-founded several businesses before dedicating himself fully to his not-for-profit initiative, the War Childhood Museum. He is an avid traveler, having visited over 90 countries.
Jasminko Halilovic is the Founder and Director-General of the War Childhood Museum (WCM), the world's only museum dedicated to the experiences of children affected by war. The WCM received the Council of Europe Museum Prize as part of the European Museum of the Year program.
Jasminko has written and edited several books, including "Sarajevo – My City, a Place to Meet" and the award-winning "War Childhood," translated into six languages. He holds a master's degree in financial management and is pursuing a PhD in museum management.
He has served as a keynote speaker at conferences in over 15 countries on museums, peacebuilding, and entrepreneurship. Jasminko frequently presents and lectures at universities worldwide and has contributed to outlets like The Huffington Post, Asahi Shimbun, and Politico.
In 2018, Halilovic became the first Bosnian in Forbes’ Europe “30 under 30” list, and in 2023, he was named a European Young Leader (EYL40).
An entrepreneur since age 16, Jasminko co-founded several businesses before dedicating himself fully to his not-for-profit initiative, the War Childhood Museum. He is an avid traveler, having visited over 90 countries.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
November 14, 2023
I don't even know how to rate such a book. It's very well put together, it's sensitive to the subject matter and it's heartbreaking! I think everyone should read it and learn from it.
January 16, 2023
Beautifully profound accompaniment to one of the best Museums I have ever visited.
June 14, 2023
Great concept for a book on such a powerful topic.
Really learnt a lot from the additional essay that charts the journey from initial idea to book to museum - gave a great insight in to the whole journey.
Also loved the pieces from the museum with the stories behind each item. Felt that there could have been more of this, and a bit less of the first section of the book.
Great to be able to access this in English and to see how it has travelled around the world.
Oh, and if you ever find yourself in the beautiful city of Sarajevo, this hidden gem of a museum is a must!
Really learnt a lot from the additional essay that charts the journey from initial idea to book to museum - gave a great insight in to the whole journey.
Also loved the pieces from the museum with the stories behind each item. Felt that there could have been more of this, and a bit less of the first section of the book.
Great to be able to access this in English and to see how it has travelled around the world.
Oh, and if you ever find yourself in the beautiful city of Sarajevo, this hidden gem of a museum is a must!
November 17, 2023
Inspiring, heart-wrenching, raw, essential.
This world is better because people like Jasminko Halilović exist.
I thank Jasminko for sharing his hard-fought miracle of a story... And, above all, for humanizing so many de-humanized war victims through his amazing storytelling craft, both in this book and in the War Childhood Museum in Logavina Ulica in Sarajevo.
Bravo.
This world is better because people like Jasminko Halilović exist.
I thank Jasminko for sharing his hard-fought miracle of a story... And, above all, for humanizing so many de-humanized war victims through his amazing storytelling craft, both in this book and in the War Childhood Museum in Logavina Ulica in Sarajevo.
Bravo.
November 20, 2018
Heartbroken.
February 7, 2019
I read the English version of War Childhood after visiting the museum in Sarajevo. I thought it would be a quick read. It was not. It took almost 2 weeks because I could only process a few pages at a time of what life was like growing up during the war.
May 3, 2025
https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/war-childhood-from-sarajevo-to-syria-memories-of-life-and-hope-by-jasminko-halilovic/
This book is essentially a collection of very short reminiscences gathered via Twitter (back in the olden days) from people who were children during the siege of Sarajevo, answering the question ‘Šta je za tebe djetinjstvo u ratu?’ – ‘What was war childhood for you?’ This is topped by the author’s own story of his childhood in the besieged city, and tailed by some photographs of toys and other artefacts donated to the museum, and the story of how the museum was set up.
It’s grim stuff. You can fit a lot of pathos into 140 characters, and there must be more than two thousand tweets archived here. Some of the children’s experiences are very Bosnia-specific – for instance, the horrible tinned meat supplied as humanitarian aid, some of which was rumoured to be left over from the Vietnam War twenty years earlier.
But a lot of it is universal for children in conflict zones – the violent deaths of siblings, schoolfriends and parents; the shortage of entertainment and safe places to play; the rarity of sweets, candy and chocolate; the smells.
At the time I bought the book, conflict was raging in Syria; since then we’ve had Ukraine and Gaza, not to mention the less reported wars in Africa. Whatever view one may have of the politics behind these situations, it’s important to be reminded of the real human horror of living under fire and constant threat of death, and that ordinary people cannot and must not be blamed when their home becomes a war zone.
A sobering read.
This book is essentially a collection of very short reminiscences gathered via Twitter (back in the olden days) from people who were children during the siege of Sarajevo, answering the question ‘Šta je za tebe djetinjstvo u ratu?’ – ‘What was war childhood for you?’ This is topped by the author’s own story of his childhood in the besieged city, and tailed by some photographs of toys and other artefacts donated to the museum, and the story of how the museum was set up.
It’s grim stuff. You can fit a lot of pathos into 140 characters, and there must be more than two thousand tweets archived here. Some of the children’s experiences are very Bosnia-specific – for instance, the horrible tinned meat supplied as humanitarian aid, some of which was rumoured to be left over from the Vietnam War twenty years earlier.
But a lot of it is universal for children in conflict zones – the violent deaths of siblings, schoolfriends and parents; the shortage of entertainment and safe places to play; the rarity of sweets, candy and chocolate; the smells.
At the time I bought the book, conflict was raging in Syria; since then we’ve had Ukraine and Gaza, not to mention the less reported wars in Africa. Whatever view one may have of the politics behind these situations, it’s important to be reminded of the real human horror of living under fire and constant threat of death, and that ordinary people cannot and must not be blamed when their home becomes a war zone.
A sobering read.
August 22, 2022
War Childhood is based on a simple plan. Individuals who were children during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1995) were asked to describe their most intense memory of that time, using only 160 characters. Reading these short quotations, one after the other, might seem monotonous, but it is not. They are poignant, angry, sad, ironic and, sometimes, unexpectedly comic. Halilovic analyzes the entries, noting that "fear" is the most common emotion mentioned and, due to the number ("tens of thousands") of explosions that were part of the lives of these children, "shells" and "shelling" are some of the most common words in the children's recollections.
Here are a few quotes to give you a picture of what the book is like: 1) "I woke in fear and went to sleep in fear. It lasted 4 years." 2) "War childhood is happiness and joy at finding 40 year old crackers from the Vietnam War in your food parcel." 3) "Being given a Mars bar and a can of Pepsi and realizing that my father had been killed."
Here are a few quotes to give you a picture of what the book is like: 1) "I woke in fear and went to sleep in fear. It lasted 4 years." 2) "War childhood is happiness and joy at finding 40 year old crackers from the Vietnam War in your food parcel." 3) "Being given a Mars bar and a can of Pepsi and realizing that my father had been killed."
October 26, 2025
Don’t look away! This book is the result of a most creative project involving child survivors of the brutality of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I purchased this from the museum of the War Childhood Museum (I also recommend visiting this touching exhibit). The atrocities of this war, and its savagery against humans, are beyond anything I could have imagined. Amidst the most terrible tragedies of the late 20th century, the voices contained in this book are from those who chose to live with gratitude and to embrace life nonetheless. These survivors are my age - so it gives me pause that just because I was born in a different place in the world I didn’t have to face the horrors they did. Their words inspire me! “Amidst all the fear and grief, at some subconscious level we were happy.” (Elma, 1985)
December 21, 2025
This museum is one of the saddest and most important museums I think I’ve ever been to and the book is no different. It is so important that to me that other people’s stories are told and that’s the whole reason I love reading. Truly so heartbreaking that war is the reality for so many children around the world and it’s just a matter of where people were born that decides their fate. Sobbing reading this book and in this museum.
May 3, 2023
Andate a vedere il War Childhood Museum di Sarajevo e compratevi il libro (c'è anche in italiano). Ne valgono veramente la pena.
April 14, 2024
For everyone would advice
August 22, 2025
As a book is terrible. Nevertheless, the idea and intention are fantastic, I've visited the War Childhood Museum more than one time and it's super recommended.
December 20, 2025
Devastating
April 12, 2025
I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the region or in memorialising traumatic (historical) events / the politics of memory, or in museums and collection of testimonials in general.
The book has several sections
- the writer sharing their own war childhood experiences
- the process of collecting memories of his generation (adults who were kids during the siege of Sarajevo)
- the (max. 160 characters long) memories of the participants of the project (thousand people who sent their associations about their war childhood to the writer/editor of the book)
- the process of creating a permanent space for the War Childhood Museum in Sarajevo
- some pictures of objects from the museum's collection, with commentaries of the people who donated them.
This book had a lot of things i did expect (mentions of how life is when schools cannot run normally, people are being shot at, there is no electricity, water, food supply, heating, enough firewood; time spent in basements/cellars, getting humanitarian aid; loosing so many loved ones). But, crucially, there were also details that i did not expect at all, e.g. children's most popular wartime game being "rat-tat-tat-tat", playing with barbie dolls who had their legs or arms removed, like some of the survivors of the attacks.
This book is really worth reading not only because it paints such a vivid picture of traumatising circumstances but also because it demonstrates that even in war, children have an incredible capacity to keep trying to find fun, joys, humor, and togetherness.
The book has several sections
- the writer sharing their own war childhood experiences
- the process of collecting memories of his generation (adults who were kids during the siege of Sarajevo)
- the (max. 160 characters long) memories of the participants of the project (thousand people who sent their associations about their war childhood to the writer/editor of the book)
- the process of creating a permanent space for the War Childhood Museum in Sarajevo
- some pictures of objects from the museum's collection, with commentaries of the people who donated them.
This book had a lot of things i did expect (mentions of how life is when schools cannot run normally, people are being shot at, there is no electricity, water, food supply, heating, enough firewood; time spent in basements/cellars, getting humanitarian aid; loosing so many loved ones). But, crucially, there were also details that i did not expect at all, e.g. children's most popular wartime game being "rat-tat-tat-tat", playing with barbie dolls who had their legs or arms removed, like some of the survivors of the attacks.
This book is really worth reading not only because it paints such a vivid picture of traumatising circumstances but also because it demonstrates that even in war, children have an incredible capacity to keep trying to find fun, joys, humor, and togetherness.
January 25, 2019
The reason I got the book was because they collected memories of the war from people who are the same generation as myself - born in 70’s to 80’s, and they spent nearly 4 years in the war when I had no idea whatsoever about Sarajevo! Each person’s message is short but I think it makes the book all more powerful.
I also went to the museum in Sarajevo last June, it’s very well done great project. Read and visit Sarajevo, it’s really strong, beautiful place!
I also went to the museum in Sarajevo last June, it’s very well done great project. Read and visit Sarajevo, it’s really strong, beautiful place!
April 29, 2023
Kupio sam ovu knjigu u Muzeju ratnog djetinjstva u Sarajevu. Dragocena zbirka svedočanstava, koja se ne čita kao ostale knjige. Bukvalno sam čitao po nekoliko sećanja dnevno, nakon čega sam morao praviti pauzu da svarim. Svako treba pročitati.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews