Amra Sabic-El-Rayess

A book told in three summers about cousins who visit, have adventures, and experience life very differently because of their backgrounds and circumstances. It is Amra's memoir of the idyllic summers she remembers in the years leading up to war and genocide. Amra starts the book in grief after the death of her beloved older brother and her new relationship with her cousin/"sister" is balm to her soul.
The read was slow paced. The end material was interesting with historical notes for what show more happened in Yugoslavia and the ethnic and religious conflict. I also appreciated the where are they now section. show less

A memoir of a teenage girl in Bosnia in the 1990s during the genocide. Her powerful story is deftly written, emotionally-stirring, and incredibly relevant in today's world. The author is now a professor at Columbia Teachers College. Back matter includes a timeline of the conflict and an author's note relating how she came to write the book. Recommended for grades 9-12. Note: This is a book about war and genocide, and includes the issue of sexual violence against women as tool of war.

You wanna have a look into a life of a young school girl in a war and under the siege? How she and her family coped with all the difficulties brought by an evil intent of destroying them...

kerr