Asne Seierstad began her writing career as a Moscow correspondent; the conflict in Chechnya was the first war she covered. Now ten years later, she returns to Chechnya and discovers that though the world's attention has moved on, the tragedy has continued, killing 10 to 15 per cent of the population and leaving a brutalised society - with a particular toll on its children - in its wake. Combining the violent history of the Caucasus and the battle between freedom fighters and the empire, with the story of the journeys Seierstad undertook in secrecy and disguise over the last two years, this will be another landmark book from this brave and brilliant writer.