Alen Meskovic – Ukulele Jam

This timely, powerful novel about the refugee experience tells the story of Miki, a Bosnian teenager, and his family escaping the Yugoslav war. Living in a Croatian refugee camp, a dilapidated former holiday centre, Miki is haunted by violent war memories. Ukelele Jam tells of a life of extremity and danger that is also full of humour and human fellowship. As the conflict catches up with them, Miki and his new friends pick up girls, listen to music and have campfire parties on the beach. Ukulele Jam is the story of a young man’s survival instinct during these hate-filled years of nationalism. Meškovic’s novel is a European success. It has been translated into German, Croatian, Hungarian and Slovenian, and is being developed as a film in Germany, where it is also a long-running theatre production.