- Published: 03/07/2014
- ISBN: 9781783781218
- Granta Books
- 224 pages
Bluebird: A Memoir
Vesna Maric
Vesna Maric left Bosnia the beginning of the war, at the age of sixteen, on a convoy of coaches carrying refugees to Penrith in the north of England. Bluebird is Vesna’s funny, vivid and immensely readable memoir of the experience, from the beginning of the war through to her eventual return to Bosnia years later. Unlike many books on Bosnia, and refugees in general, Bluebird is never self-pitying, never grave. It’s refreshing to read an account of these experiences filtered through the eyes of a teenager with attitude – written with brilliant comic timing and a great storytelling gift.
£8.99
Her confident, beguiling voice, her refusal to be pitied or patronised, reminds us that young people caught up in war have their own perspectives, their own stories to tell. I'm sure it is a voice we will hear more of in the future
Guardian
Maric is an exquisite, careful writer. Her sparse memoir, made up of a series of illuminating short stories, skewers Britain through a newcomer's eyes ... With a linguistic talent remarkable for someone who began regularly speaking English only at the age of 16, Maric conveys the unsettling, often magical experience of losing her roots
Sunday Times Culture
Told with humour and defiance, this is the inspiring tale of a brave young woman
Belfast Telegraph
Vesna Maric on Granta.com
Essays & Memoir | The Online Edition
The Fascist Within
Vesna Maric
‘Yugoslavia’s ending, in bloodshed, cannot be its only legacy, the only lesson we take away from its existence.’
Essays & Memoir | Granta Books
War and Virus
Vesna Maric
‘Wars, national disasters and pandemics do not cause social disintegration – they reveal it, and deepen it.’
Vesna Maric on the difference between wars and viruses.
