Rather than relying purely on creative imagination, Krsmanović spent years gathering . The resulting text reads like a grim chronicle, shifting between literary prose and raw, documentary-style reporting of the massacres. The Drina River, which forms the natural border between Bosnia and Serbia, serves as a central symbol—a literal and metaphorical graveyard for thousands of victims trying to flee to safety. Structure of the Novel
In the aftermath of the massacre, Bosnian Serb leaders, including General Mladić, were indicted for war crimes and genocide. In 2017, Mladić was convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, and sentenced to life imprisonment.
Momir Krsmanović’s "Teče krvava Drina" is a significant, yet controversial, historical novel that chronicles the atrocities against Serbs in Eastern Bosnia during WWII, often highlighting the struggle against historical amnesia. The work is noted for its graphic realism and its role in documenting the specific, often silenced, ethnic suffering of the Drina Valley. For more information on historical documentation in this region, visit Muzej žrtava genocida
The primary source is a novel by Momir Krsmanović, first published in 1983. Its content, focused on the suffering of Serbs during World War II, made it a highly contentious publication within socialist Yugoslavia.