Only the Nails Remain: Scenes from the Balkan Wars is a chronicle of poet and critic Christopher Merrill's ten war-time journeys to the Balkans from the years 1992 through 1996. At once a travelogue, a book of war reportage, and a biography of the imagination under siege, this beautifully written and personal narrative takes the reader along on the author's journeys to all the provinces and republics of the former Yugoslavia-Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and Vojvodina-as well as to Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, Italy, and Turkey. His journeys provide the narrative structure for an exploration of the roles and responsibility of intellectuals caught up in a decisive historical moment, many of whom either helped to incite the war or else bore eloquent witness to its carnage. What separates this book-the first non-native literary work on the conflict-from other collections of reportage, political analysis, and polemic, is its concern for capturing the texture of particular places in the midst of dramatic change-the sounds and sights and smells, the stories and observations of victim and perpetrator alike, the culture of war. Here is a literary meditation on war, a fascinating portrait of the poetry, politics and the people of the Balkans that will provide insight into the past, present, and future of those war-torn lands. Hear an interview with the author on NPR's Weekend All Things Considered, February 20th, 'Balkan Poets.'

Part 1 August-September 1992 Chapter 2 Journey Chapter 3 Pohorje Chapter 4 Ljubljana I Chapter 5 Triglav Chapter 6 Ljubljana II Chapter 7 Venice Chapter 8 Vilenica Part 9 December 1992-February 1993 Chapter 10 Croatia Chapter 11 Dalmatia Chapter 12 Serbia Chapter 13 Montenegro Chapter 14 Macedonia Chapter 15 Kosovo Chapter 16 Flight Part 17 May 1993-April 1996 Chapter 18 Sarajevo I Chapter 19 Sarajevo II Chapter 20 Mostar Chapter 21 Sarajevo III Chapter 22 Albania Chapter 23 Expedition Chapter 24 Barcelona Chapter 25 Epilogue