The Monkey House

Well all i can say is that this book is the by far the best book i have read this year. It is stunningly gripping written with obvious style and talent. It is not a book to be missed.

Fast paced and exciting this book will keep you on edge the whole way through.I couldn't get to sleep without finishing it.This writer has a lot of talent.

John Fullerton's excellent book "The Monkey House" clearly describes civilian hardship in Sarajevo during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War. The author paints his story in shades of grey -- there are no highlights for civilians during wartime. Finding food and shelter while battling constant fear is exhausting. Decency is subordinated to staying alive, and patriotism is a luxury. Wartime permanently mars survivors. The attitudes survivors learn remain with them, and these attitudes affect survivors for the rest of their lives.This book describes police superintendent Rosso's investigation of a murder. The murder was ordered by a successful gangster, drug smuggler, and profiteer whose gang acts as wartorn Sarajevo's civilian militia. A subplot describes an American reporter's experiences in Sarajevo, and contrasts the reporter's affluent lifestyle with the lives of those around him. The Bosnian settling is relevant today because UN peacekeeping efforts continue in Bosnia today.John Fullerton has portrayed war's long-lasting hardship within a clearly written and interesting novel, an impressive accomplishment.

The plot is OK, but this book gives you a great idea of what it was like to live through the harsh Sarajevo winters when the city was under siege and the western world didn't really care yet. I was posted in Sarajevo with SFOR for several months (after the siege-in 1997) and found the descriptions of the city very realistic

Being a Sarajevan myself, I was sceptical about outsiders writing about my city and my war, However J. Fullerton did it very well. It is not a book one can enjoy , but it is a true book . I would recommend it to those who prefer truth to convenience.