To think this occurred only thirty years ago. The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway is one of those reads that will haunt you, drawing out the darkest parts of modern history yet shedding a light on the hopeful, resilient acts of humanity that we as humans persist to partake in despite such atrocities. It is a read that is mesmerising and sorrowful, immersive and emotional, and one that echoes through time.

This brilliant novel with universal resonance, set during the 1990s Siege of Sarajevo, tells the story of three people trying to survive in a city rife with the extreme fear of desperate times, and of the sorrowing cellist who plays undaunted in their midst. One day a shell lands in a bread line and kills twenty-two people as the cellist watches from a window in his flat. He vows to sit in the hollow where the mortar fell and play Albinoni’s Adagio once a day for each of the twenty-two victims. The Adagio had been re-created from a fragment after the only extant score was firebombed in the Dresden Music Library, but the fact that it had been rebuilt by a different composer into something new and worthwhile gives the cellist hope. Meanwhile, Kenan steels himself for his weekly walk through the dangerous streets to collect water for his family on the other side of town, and Dragan, a man Kenan doesn’t know, tries to make his way towards the source of the free meal he knows is waiting. Both men are almost paralyzed with fear, uncertain when the next shot will land on the bridges or streets they must cross, unwilling to talk to their old friends of what life was once like before divisions were unleashed on their city. Then there is “Arrow,” the pseudonymous name of a gifted female sniper, who is asked to protect the cellist from a hidden shooter who is out to kill him as he plays his memorial to the victims. In this beautiful and unforgettable novel, Steven Galloway has taken an extraordinary, imaginative leap to create a story that speaks powerfully to the dignity and generosity of the human spirit under extraordinary duress.

The Siege of Sarajevo spanned nearly four years, from April 1992 to February 1996, which is not long ago at all. It is within my generations lifetime, something my parents would have been listening to on the news only a handful of years older than I am now. On one hand, I almost can’t believe something like this was still happening in the 90s, but all you have to do is look at what’s happening in the world right now to see that it isn’t so unexpected. Then the only thing I can think of is how undereducated our younger generations are on social issues and current events like wars, sieges, occupations and the likes, because it is events like these that carry such an impact on a global scale for years to come.

The Cellist of Sarajevo is a gripping, heartfelt tale charged with energy and emotion. the stakes are high right off the bat, the tension piercing all the way through, and the imagery of this rubble-filled, broken city will make you feel like a hand is pressing down on your chest. The lingering impact of character monologues, experiences, feelings and thoughts is relatable, and so easily multipled to consider the millions around the world suffering similar fates. You can’t read The Cellist of Sarajevo without connecting it to current events, and for that this novel hits so deeply.

Not only that, but we have so much introspection and thought coming from these protagonists that contribute to the greater philosophy and questions of life, meaning, and the value of life. What diminishes you as a human? What is at the core of humanity? What is so intrinsically human that it is part of life itself? Pair that with the beauty of music, of a cello playing in a mortar-struck courtyard where so many lost their lives, and you have a harrowing picture the reader will not forget. The Cellist of Sarajevo is not afraid to showcase the beauty and the horror of humanity, and it does so with such sharp, meaningful detail.

The Cellist of Sarajevo is an absolute must-read for histrical ficiton readers, literary fiction readers, and adult readers looking for something short yet powerful. It is a startling example of of moving literature is, how many voices can be heard through one story, and how relatable such events are in a world that doesn’t want to learn from its past. The Cellist of Sarajevo is something that stands outside of time and space, instead it fits right in the heart of all readers and strives to remain there.