Ett halvt ar, ett helt liv - Half a year, A Whole life

source: Goodreads 

 Translated by Dr. Eman Tahawy, 2023

Half a year, A Whole life

This is a true story about Magnus Ernström's time as a UN soldier during the Bosnian War. It is his version of a Swedish battalion's struggle to save the lives of the civilian population from ethnic cleansing.

A sometimes violent struggle that was not only waged against war criminals, but sometimes also against their own: the UN, the Swedish government, and major political interests.

Swedish young people who have never encountered anything like this and who have no idea what is expected of them. They face the evil of war and the cruelty of people towards each other.

Chronologically, we then get to follow the author's inner and outer journey over the course of six months.

He goes his own way and receives devastating criticism but is hailed as a hero when the battle is won.

With dramatic tension, the story escalates when one of the three parties in the conflict prevents the Swedish battalion from entering Bosnia with intense fighting.

Ett halvt ar, ett helt liv - Half a year, A Whole life

Written by :Magnus Ernström

304 pages, Hardcover

Published May 21, 2016

Narrated by : Martin Halland (AUDIOBOOK)

Gripping and true recent story from the Swedish UN mission in Bosnia

An exciting and bewildering eyewitness account of the Swedish UN soldiers' struggle to save lives in the brutal civil war in the former Yugoslavia.

"... superb and spellbinding reading." Lars Wilderäng

"Magnus Ernström writes impressively vividly." Stefan Holmberg, Norran

"... a real writing talent behind the word processor." Karl Hjelm, DAST Magazine

"The book is a strong and very readable debut." Malin Norrby, KM

"... a dramatic journey at a high pace..." Andreas Lenander, BTJ

Bosnia revisited: by Lars Georg Larsson, 17 October 2017

I myself participated in BA01 in the autumn of 1993 and when I now read Ernström's very well-written book, everything comes back. The very special atmosphere. Boredom. The constant smell of smoke. The sound of daily artillery shelling all around. Tank fire on ourselves.

The book can be recommended to anyone with an interest in the Balkan disaster 25 years ago.

Morning Sur | Bitter analysis and better alternatives (wordpress.com)

Ett halvt år, ett helt liv by Magnus Ernström - Audiobook | Scribd

Ett halvt år, ett helt liv by Magnus Ernström | Goodreads

The Role of Peacekeepers in the 1990s: Swedish Experience in UNPROFOR on JSTOR

32 - Mission Command and Mission Success with Nordbat 2 | The Principles of War Podcast

Stupni Do massacre - Wikipedia 

Trigger-Happy, Autonomous, and Disobedient: Nordbat 2 and Mission Command in Bosnia (thestrategybridge.org)