The non-fiction book originated as a series of faxes from European comics agent Ervin Rustemagi? during the Serbian siege of Sarajevo in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Rustemagi? and his family, whose home and possessions in the suburb of Dobrinja were destroyed, spent two-and-a-half years in a ruined building, communicating with the outside world via fax when they could. Friend and client Kubert, the highly regarded artist of DC Comics' Sgt. Rock, Hawkman, and many other titles, was one recipient. Collaborating long-distance, they collected Rustemagi?'s account of life during wartime, with Kubert turning the raw faxes into a somber comics tale that won both of the comics industry's two major accolades, the Eisner Award and the Harvey Award.