Just by chance I was given "the Cellist of Sarajevo" to read and I'm so glad that I did not miss this real gem of a book. It is written by Steven Galloway and is set in the 1990s during various stages of the four siege of the city. It is harrowing to hear how the people survived the constant shelling by the rival factions in the hills above the city. They all survived with litlle electricity and no running water, let alone the small problem of food shortages. The story is told by four very different characters all, equally affected and damaged by the war. It sounds grim and in parts , it is, but it is also a very uplifting story of hope and pride and sheer guts. It is based on the story of a real cellist who chose to play his cello in the street for 21 days as the mortar shells explode around him. The adagio by Albinoni is a soulful piece of music but for all of the people of Sarajevo and especially the four characters in the book, this act of resistance and the unifying and civilizing power of music was very symbolic. Needless to say there is a lot of human interest detail and the characters are very well developed in such short chapters. I thoroughly enjoyed this book but its message was very emotional and very powerfully delivered. Incidentally its structure and the character deveopment would make it work very well for the personal study, but that is quite apart from being a superb read !