
Anisuz Zaman
An anthology that captures the brutality, sacrifice, and psychological scars of Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War.
War and Trauma, translated by Haroonuzzaman, is an anthology that captures the brutality, sacrifice, and psychological scars of Bangladesh’s 1971 Liberation War. Bringing together master storytellers—including Shawkat Osman, Zahir Raihan, Hasan Azizul Huq, Akhteruzzaman Ilias, Selina Hossain, and Humayun Ahmed—the collection explores the multifaceted human experience under existential crisis. The narratives portray ordinary citizens caught in terror: dedicated firemen facing execution, a woman confronting the trauma of sexual violence, a fearful lecturer transformed by a freedom fighter’s raincoat, and marginalized peasants defending their homesteads. In post-war settings, the stories follow forgotten war heroes reduced to day laborers and an elderly father tirelessly collecting signatures to demand justice for the victims of genocide.