Following a personal tragedy Bill Carter embarks on a search for redemption that leads him to war-torn Bosnia. When he joins a maverick aid organisation that delivers food to remote corners of Sarajevo, Bill soon finds himself involved in the lives of the people living in the besieged city. Amidst the sniper bullets and the random explosions that underline the fragility of every moment, Bill discovers a vibrant artistic community that becomes an endless source of inspiration for him, thrumming with music, humour and passion.

Author Biography

Not just travel writing but also part autobiography this is an incredibly moving account of a young man's quest to make sense of war and death...When his girlfriend dies in a tragic accident, Bill Carter embarks on a search for redemption that leads him to war-torn Bosnia. Joining a bunch of misfits called The Serious Road Trip with a base in an abandoned tower block he sets off in a battered truck delivering food supplies while dodging sniper bullets and Serb mortar attacks. In Sarajevo, Carter finds his way into the artistic community and finds performances of the musical HAIR that carry on through the blackouts, fashion shows with clothes made out of recycled waste, portraitists rejuvenating war heroes and a music scene as vibrant as 1930s Berlin. The humour and strength of the extraordinary people he befriends in the besieged city that becomes his home will lend him the key to his own emotional recovery. Then, in a bizarre twist of fate, he meets and persuades the super-band U2 to establish live satellite links between Sarajevo and their ZOOropa tour concerts, bringing a veiled conflict to the attention of millions worldwide. Interwoven into Carter's raw and funny account of frontline life in the Bosnian capital is his own story of growing up in mid-western America with an abusive father; his journey around the globe and a tragic story of love and loss.