Maja

“Lost in his thoughts he looked out from his shop at the shining loveliness of that first day of March. Opposite him, a little to the side, stood the eternal bridge, everlastingly the same; through its white arches could be seen the green, sparkling, tumultuous waters of the Drina, so that they seemed like some strange diadem in two colours which sparkled in the sun.”
― Ivo Andrić, The Bridge on the Drina

“Whenever a government feels the need of promising peace and prosperity to its citizens by means of a proclamation, it is time to be on guard and expect the opposite.”
― Ivo Andrić, The Bridge on the Drina

“Ono što bi se za njih naročito moglo kazati, to je: da nije bilo odavno pokolenja koje je više i smelije maštalo i govorilo o životu, uživanju i slobodi, a koje je manje imalo od života, gore stradalo, teže robovalo i više ginulo nego što će stradati, robovati i ginuti ovo.”
― Ivo Andrić, The Bridge on the Drina

“The streets were empty, the courtyards and gardens as if dead. In the Turkish houses depression and confusion reigned, in the Christian houses caution and distrust. But everywhere and for everyone there was fear. The entering Austrians feared an ambush. The Turks feared the Austrians. The Serbs feared both Austrians and Turks. The Jews feared everything and everyone since, especially in times of war, everyone was stronger than they.”
― Ivo Andrić, The Bridge on the Drina