| The Cellist of Sarajevo |  | Author: Steven Galloway
Publisher: Vintage Canada
Category: Book
List Price: CDN$ 21.00
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Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 56
Media: Paperback
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.2 x 0.9
ISBN: 0307397041
EAN: 9780307397041
ASIN: 0307397041
Publication Date: February 12, 2009
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Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
 Good, but not great January 27, 2010
Andrea (Ontario, Canada)
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
[Cross posted to LibraryThing and LivingSocial]
The Cellist of Sarajevo is not really about a cellist, though it is the cellists music that provides the unifying thread between the three main characters. Arrow, a young female sniper, has compromised her beliefs and basically given up her youth in the siege. We follow her over the course of the cellists 22 days as she watches him and protects him. Dragan is an older man whose family has fled to safety while he stayed behind and now isnt sure what he has left to live for. Kenan still has his family and struggles every day to provide for them and maintain some semblance of happiness.
Ultimately, I didnt love the book and dont necessarily agree that its a masterpiece. That being said, it was very good. Maybe I was expecting the book to be something other than what it was: I was expecting more of a plot-driven story and, given the title, I was expecting more a focus on the cellist himself. Instead, the book alternated between Arrow, Dragan, and Kenan and was much more character driven. There are moments of suspense and tension, but the focus is on exploring these peoples experiences of the siege, their different coping strategies, the sacrifices and compromises they have to make on a daily basis. Galloway does a very good job with these themes but, as one of my book club members said about the experience, it felt like the book was building towards something that never materialized.
The writing was sparse, vivid and at times, beautiful, but I felt that the Arrow sections could have been much better. It seemed like Galloway was trying too hard with them, maybe because she was the only female character? Arrow as a character also left me cold, though I suspect that may have been the intended response. Because most of the book was more reflective, the moments when action occurred were that much more intense. I actually gasped at one point and got a bit queasy at another.
In the end, I think the book is worth the read. The ideas that Galloway explores are interesting and it makes you think about how you would react in a similar situation, at the same time praying that you never have to experience anything like it.
 A good book October 1, 2009
D Mac (Canada)
This is a good book, but it's short. I tend to like books that take a while to read, that get deeper into the history of its characters. This book doesn't really do that, but it does tear wide open, the deepest part of its characters. It also made me thankful for the small luxuries that we take for granted, such as running water, electricity, and the general content and safety of our daily lives.
 Amazing September 10, 2009
Toni Osborne (Montreal, Canada)
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Centered on the conflict in Sarajevo, the story is recounting the struggle of three inhabitants during the city's siege during the mid 1990's: a female sniper called Arrow, Kenan a father on a trip to get water for his family and his neighbour and Dragan, a baker on his way to work. Uniting the story threads is a renowned cellist who witnessed the killed 22 people while they were waiting in line to buy bread. To commemorate each victim, he decided to play his instrument once a day in the crater left by the mortar shell.
This work of fiction highlights the harsh situations ordinary people are forced to endure during the time of civil unrest and how they adapt in order to survive. How each individual controls hate and tries to remain human facing the horrific atrocities of war.
Mr Galloway avoided labelling his main characters with ethnic qualifications by simply naming them Sarajevans and calling their enemies "the men on the hills". The prose is exquisite and quite moving; it is difficult to avoid wondering how one would react under similar circumstances. This is one brilliant tale that chronicles the evils of war and draws attention to the courage and spirit people inherently have within them.
This is one strong, powerful and utterly amazing novel.
Don't Miss Out On This One August 31, 2009
J. Weir (Seattle, Washington United States)
This is truly the best read I've had this year. Read what the reviewers say, believe what the reviewers say, buy the book.
A small masterpiece by Steven Galloway August 3, 2009
R. Nicholson
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Although a work of fiction, this book's founding premise is based on a real life event. To quote from the 'afterword'...
"At four o'clock on the afternoon on 27 May 1992, during the siege of Sarajevo, several mortar shells struck a group of people waiting to buy bread...twenty two people where killed...For the next twenty two days Vedran Samilovic, a renowned local cellist, play Albinoni's Adagio in G Minor at the local site in honor of the dead."
Galloway uses this horrific event and Samilovic's heroic gesture to give us a glimpse of the spirit human...replete with all its unsuspected strengths and soul-searching frailties.
The story sequentially follows three individuals during the span of days that the cellist is playing the Adagio.
They are Kenan, a father with wife and children who must make a dangerous trek every few days to get clean water for his family and neighbor.
Dragan, a sixty four year old who, because he works at a bakery, is able to get bread on a regular basis for his sister and husband.
And Arrow, a female sniper whose growing reputation for 'kills' is about to put her in a situation that will profoundly change the way in which she looks at and interprets her own existence.
And although the three individuals never meet, they are indelibly connected by the events happening within the besieged city and, in a more remote sense, by the fact that someone (the cellist) is trying to make a gesture to honor the fallen.
Galloway's book is special; special because he is able to cut to the chase when describing peoples most private thoughts when under duress. Each of the three protagonist is wrapped up in an series of tragic events over which they have no control but yet has profoundly changed their lives. Through their eyes we are privileged to witness not only acts of selfless courage but also of some mind-numbing inaction; things that make them realize some of their own previously unknown inner strengths and yet at other times, expose personal shortcomings that absolutely crush their self-esteem.
Although the book focuses mainly on those within Sarajevo, there is one glimpse into the effect the war has had on the the besiegers ( referred to as 'the men on the hill' ). And if you will bear with me, I'll give a brief account of a point in this book that moved me very much...
The 'men on the hill' have sent a sniper to kill the cellist; to kill him while he is playing to make a 'statement' to those who remain in the besieged city. Arrow has been assigned to protect the cellist by killing the sniper; she eventually finds him across from the plaza where the cellist is playing, in a remote window...through her scope she sees...
"If he moves, she will fire. But he does not move. The music is nearly finished, and he hasn't shifted a millimetre. She begins to doubt herself, wonder if he's real, if it's possible he's a decoy. But then he moves, and she knows what she sees is a person.
His head leans back slightly, and she sees that his eyes are closed, that he's no longer looking through his scope. She knows what he's doing. It's very clear to her, unmistakable. He's listening to the music."
Conclusion:
A truly remarkable book; full on insights that will make you want to stop reading and reflect.
5 Stars...more if I could.
Ray Nicholson
Showing reviews 1-5 of 18
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