Pretty Birds

I never really understood what caused or influenced the outbreak of the Serbian-Bosnian war and [Pretty Birds] by Scott Simon doesn’t really delve into these issues either. Instead it tells the harrowingly haunting story of Irena Zaric a seventeen year old school-girl interested in pop music, boys and being the star of her basketball team whose world changes overnight as she and her family are forced to flee their home, live on starvation rations, learn to duck bullets and live in a new world, one of horror and violence. “Ethnic Cleansing” is a terrible, dirty phrase, yet one I fear the world is still hearing about from many different quarters.

Irena’s world quickly develops into one where she, her family and her friends are show more classified according to their ethnic background. Irena’s best friend, Amela, is classified as a Serb. Irena and her family are considered to be Muslim, although their background is truly mixed. Irena is slowly drawn into the war until she finds herself being trained as a sniper. Many young girls on both sides were trained as snipers thereby freeing the young men to join the front lines of their respective armies.

Scott Simon is a journalist and tells this story in a straight forward, unemotional way. Yet through the development of his characters, great emotion is shown and felt. Irena’s parents, a pair of grown up hippies whose world has crumbled, are wonderful characters, showing both dignity and humor in facing their situation. One scene comes to mind that was filled with humor, dismay and grace was an evening meal prepared by Irena’s mother that included both grass cuttings and chopped up snails, along with their U.N. provided macaroni. As they chew on this stew, no complaints are made, instead they all start making animal sounds, mooing like a cow or bleating like a goat. When one member pulls a chewy piece of macaroni from their mouths and discovers it is really a worm, they simply get on with their meal.

I was glued to the pages of this book finding it gripping, emotional, painful, and yes, at times even funny. Like a small time capsule one minute I am reading about Irena’s joy in her Air Jordans and Espirt jeans, or her crush on Johnny Depp, suddenly something will happen to throw me back into the horror that the beautiful town of Sarajevo became in the early nineties. This was a truly moving read. show less

[Pretty Birds] is both a disturbing and funny novel. Irena Zaric is 17-year-old Muslim high school student whose life, and those of her family, neighbors, and friends, is completely changed when civil war erupts in her country. When the fighting begins it is so intense in their neighborhood that Irena’s parents decide that they must move across the river to her grandmother’s house. In trying to do so they are attacked by Serbian fighters who rape and beat the family and murder a neighbor. Her mother’s rage at their actions is so great that she physically and verbally assaults the soldiers. When the family reaches their grandmother’s apartment it’s to find that the grandmother and one of her neighbors were both victims of a show more sniper. With only the clothes on their backs, the Zaric’s and one of her grandmother’s friends, Aleksandra, plunder for food and clothing the apartments of those who have died or left.
Life for the Zaric’s becomes daily survival and boredom. No electricity, no water, no food, only what they can scrounge. When relief parcels begin the Zaric’s must weigh the necessity of getting food and water against the possibility of being shot or bombed while standing in line (as one of Irena’s friends was).
The title of the book comes from the name of the Zaric’s parrot, Pretty Bird, which has the talent for imitating the sounds of mechanical objects (washing machine, coffeemaker, telephone, etc.). When bird seed is no longer available and Pretty Bird is dying from starvation because she won’t eat other food, Irena braves the streets to go to the vet in the hopes that she has seed. Later Irena works with the vet in trying to alleviate the suffering of the city’s animals, including those at the zoo.
Later while in line for water, Irena is approached by Miroslav Tedic, a former assistant principal of a rival school, now attached to the Home Ministry. He suggests to her that with her athleticism she could help her country. He introduces her to a group of other young people, all of whom he has given the names of Hollywood stars. He renames Irena to Ingrid. She is trained as a sniper and paid in American cigarettes and beer. Her parents turn a blind eye to her strange hours and to the chances she takes when trying to reconnect with a school friend living on the other side.
Simon, who spent a great deal of time in Serbia as a correspondent for NPR, does a masterful job of showing the day-to-day situation for the inhabitants of Sarajevo. His characters have nothing nice to say about the U.N. soldiers who are sent into the carnage, but are allowed to do nothing but watch. This was a book filled with pathos and black comedy and will, I’m sure, live in my heart for a long time. show less

A compelling story of modern warfare includes the use of young (late teen) women as snipers and pawns of war in an urban setting.
The characters and story line are believable and heartbreaking.
This book brings to mind other books about youth and war: All Quiet on the Western Front and A Separate Peace.

Filled with funny moments which made me squirm through the laughter. This book follows a seventeen year old muslim girl through her experience of the war in Bosnia. Scott Simon is a reporter for NPR and based the book partly on people he met while covering the war.

This book gave me nightmares. I actually didn't finish it, but almost made it to the end before I decided not to put myself through any more. Still, for what it is, it is a good book.

A very human, believable take on the conflict in Yugoslavia. Powerful.

Story of the siege of Sarajewo during the Bosnian war.A tale of friendship, love, betrayal and survival in the divided city once knows as the Jerusalem of Europe for its tolerance of multiple religions. As the war begans friends and families are forced to choose side ina desperate attemt at survival. One Muslim girl a bosnian becomes a sniper for their army while still maintaining a relationship with her best friend who has fled over to the Serb controlled part of the city.