Jun 13

Jun 13 Black Butterflies

Author: Priscilla Morris
Publisher: Duckworth (UK publisher; not published in the US yet)
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

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Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

Sarajevo, spring 1992. Each night, nationalist gangs erect barricades, splitting the diverse city into ethnic enclaves; each morning, the residents — whether Muslim, Croat or Serb — push the makeshift barriers aside.

When violence finally spills over, Zora, an artist and teacher, sends her husband and elderly mother to safety with her daughter in England. Reluctant to believe that hostilities will last more than a handful of weeks, she stays behind while the city falls under siege. As the assault deepens and everything they love is laid to waste, black ashes floating over the rooftops, Zora and her friends are forced to rebuild themselves, over and over. Theirs is a breathtaking story of disintegration, resilience and hope.

TL;DR Review

Black Butterflies is a well-researched, captivating, deeply moving novel about war and art set during the siege of Sarajevo. I couldn’t put it down and ultimately loved it.

For you if: You like books that handle heavy topics with beauty and care.

Full Review

I would probably never have read this book if it hadn’t been shortlisted for the Women’s Prize — it’s not published here in the US — but wow, am I glad I did. It was actually my pick to win among the (very strong) shortlist). What a stunner; I can’t believe it was a debut. (Pro tip: If you're in the US, you can get a paperback from Blackwells for about $15, including free shipping.)

Black Butterflies begins in the early days of what became known as the Bosnian War’s siege of Sarajevo in 1992. The main character, Zora, is a painter and art professor. She sends her husband and elderly mother to stay with their daughter in England and stays behind to work and keep watch over their apartment, thinking the conflict will be short-lived. But as weeks turn into months and phone service, food, heat, electricity, and water all become impossible to find, survival becomes a matter of both desperation and unity within the found family of neighbors.

This book isn’t very long, but it’s expertly researched (based, in part, on the lived experiences of her own family members) and deeply moving. I also found it transportive and captivating, despite the fact that it’s quite heavy. Zora’s emotions, from fear to joy, are palpable. It’s about community during crisis, small joys, the power and persistence of art, and art as an act of personal resistance. It’s also impossible to read this and not think of folks currently under siege in Ukraine — a reminder that the peace and security of our homes can vanish overnight.

Give this one a go; you won’t regret it.