First published 2005
Stephen Brings carries his camera through the bombed streets of the Balkans, but he cannot photograph away the pain. His son was kidnapped back in Chicago. His relationship collapsed. Now he drifts through a war zone, seeking nothing but escape from his memories. Each night he stays with a Croatian smuggler and his pregnant wife. Each day he brings oranges to a woman and child he has chosen to protect. Other photographers hunt for war images, but Stephen avoids their cameras and their purpose. A failed trip back to America only deepens the distance between him and his son's mother. When he returns to Sarajevo, Stephen finally picks up his camera again, this time to capture portraits of Bosnian families rather than battlefield scenes. A German journalist enters his life, and through her care, Stephen begins to heal both his body and his grief.
Genres: drama, literary-fiction, war, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, grief, redemption
Setting: Balkans, Chicago, Croatia, Sarajevo
Period: 20th-century
320 pages · Hardcover · University of Michigan Press
Content warnings: war