“The Cellist of Sarajevo” by Steven Galloway – Four Fates Into One

The loss of humanity is perhaps one of the greatest afflictions that comes for those who get embroiled in the immortal and restless spirit of war. Decisions must often be made between preserving one's humanity, or one's safety and well-being.

In The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway we are presented with a rather grandiose and powerful exploration of how individuals preserve their humanity and redeem it in the most harrowing of times. The story touches on the lives of four characters, eventually intertwining with each other.

The first story is that of a cellist who sees twenty-two people get killed by a mortar strike while waiting in line for some bread. He then decides to play for twenty-two straight days at the ground zero of the massacre.

Meanwhile, a man goes on a quest to find some water for his family, and ends up being confronted with a pressing dilemma, one that will test the very essence of his will. A third man, one who abandoned all hope, runs into an old friend on his way through the city, in the process remembering the existence of all he believed to have been lost.

Finally, a young female sniper watches the cellist through her scope of doom, putting herself at risk to save his life, and in turn forcing her superiors to question the kind of person she truly is.

In my opinion, The Cellist of Sarajevo is perhaps one of the most powerful and moving novels that I have read recently. Each of the four characters' stories is profound, complex and emotional on numerous levels; they are described in such astute and vivid detail that it becomes nearly impossible not to take part in their suffering and gut-wrenching dilemmas.

Every story deals with a different aspect of life under siege, though in the end they all relate to the question as to whether or not individuals can redeem and maintain their humanity and morality in the face certain doom... whether they can choose between personal and collective survival.

As you get better and better acquainted with their drives and philosophies it becomes increasingly apparent that they are simply humans like all others, forced to go through hell, and hopefully back, by mere virtue of their physical location; to a certain extent, they are us, and they try to keep the light of hope alive for humanity's capacity to squash down the selfish and evil side of its nature, instead making space for love and compassion.

As you can certainly guess, this is not the type of story that moves along at a fast pace... rather, it is a slower work, one that takes great care in creating a believable and enthralling environment, being filled with descriptions and insights into the minds of the characters, often leading to lengthy internal monologues.

However, they are written in such a fascinating way that they will capture your imagination and make you leaf through the pages faster than you can count them.

All things considered, The Cellist of Sarajevo is, in my opinion, one of the more thought-provoking and moving novels out there, being full of power, the kind that will make your grey cells move around and your heart palpitate.

If the exploration of human compassion and hope for a better tomorrow are topics you enjoy exploring, then this book will certainly make for an enjoyable read.

---

Steven Galloway Steven Galloway is a Canadian novelist who is also an associate professor and Acting Chair of the University of British Columbia Writing Program. His debut novel, Finnie Walsh, published in 2000, was nominated for the Amazon.ca/Books in Canada First Novel Award, while his second novel, Ascension, written in 2003, was nominated for the BC Booker Prizes' Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize.