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A key story from the newest book recently published in the Index on censorship

Index on censorship has just published a story, Emotional baggage, by Slavenka Drakulić, about a Ukrainian refugee leaving her home and going into the unknown. It is a heartbreaking record of her thoughts, emotions, and memories swirling around her head in such a dramatic moment.

Emotional baggage has become an inspiration for the whole new book!

The editor of Index on censorship called Slavenka Drakulić and asked her to write a story inspired by the war in Ukraine, something similar to one from 1993 about the girl killed in Sarajevo. Still, if she had no time, the editor said they would publish the story from 1993 because “it is still relevant as it could have happened anywhere.” This got the author thinking, resulting in the recently published book of various wartime stories – Rat je svugdje isti (Fraktura, Zagreb, 2022) (War is the same everywhere).

Cover designed by MIRKO ILIĆ

These stories allow us to taste and smell war, see it “from below” through the eyes of ordinary people, and get a sense of what it means to live through wartime situations. After reading this book, the concept of war will no longer remain distant or abstract but rather something we almost get to feel.

Emotional baggage can be accessed at this link or downloaded and read below.

Published inSlavenka's essaysWar Is The Same Everywhere