"What is the window of a shop? It is the title of a book. And as merchants often say: what’s in the shop window is also in the shop itself.
Is that the case with Vasurda? I hear that you are asking questions and listening closely. Yes, yes - there is something there, I say. Although, I believe there could have been more.
I’m saying this primarily to Karan, as a playwright. In the book, I saw many moments that, with a slightly different approach, could have more powerfully emphasized the drama of a lonely, lost boy wandering the vastness of Kozara. He tries to avoid enemy soldiers, but at the same time rushes toward them - driven by both hunger and curiosity.
This lost and lonely boy is constantly on the move. One moment he’s here, the next he’s there - like a frightened roe deer unable to find peace or safety. Much of the book focuses on this constant wandering, and that is understandable. But why didn’t he stop for a moment to rest, to listen to the birdsong, to feel the breeze, to immerse himself in the landscape - to surrender to the beauty of Mount Kozara?
Even as I offer my praise - along with some modest criticisms - I do not call into question the objectivity and truth the novel contains, which is undeniable. But we gain less from praise and more from criticism, so I have chosen to focus on the latter."
— Vojo Babić on the novel How I Received a Letter from Hitler, 2004