Miljenko Jergović

This famous writer is today considered one of the most influential and widely-read authors in the Croatian language, and is known for his stories recounting the experience of other people during the wars following the dissolution of Yugoslavia. His books have been translated into six different languages.

Miljenko Jergovic was born on May 28, 1966 in Sarajevo in the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He was born to an ethnic Croat family in Bosnia.

Miljenko grew up splitting his time between Sarajevo with his parents and Dalmatia with his grandparents. He worked as a reporter for Croatian-language media while in high school.

In 1987, Jergovic graduated from ‘Sarajevo University’ with a Master's degree in literature.

A year after he graduated, Jergovic published his debut novel, 'Warsaw Observatory', in 1988. The novel soon gained a favorable reception in his home country.

In 1992, he published a book of poetry entitled 'Uci li nocas netko u ovom gradu japanski'. In the same year he also wrote 'Himmel Comando', a deeply intense novel.

The following year, in 1993, Jergovic moved from Sarajevo to Zagreb. He has lived there ever since.

In 1994, Jergovic published a collection of previously-published short stories entitled 'Sarajevski Marlboro'. This book has been translated into 10 languages.

In 1995, this prolific writer published another collection of short stories, entitled 'Karivani'. It remains a deeply respected work in his homeland.

In 1991, Jergovic was given the ‘Croatian Veselko Tenzera Journalism Award’. In the same year he also won the ‘Goran Award’ for young poets.

In 2003, his novel 'Mama Leone' was awarded the ‘Premio Grinzane Cavour’. He traveled to Italy to receive it.