Ne okreći se, sine

Don't Turn Around, Son by Arsen Diklić is a novel for young adults based on the script for the 1956 film of the same name by Branko Bauer, one of the most notable war titles in South Slavic literature for young adults.

The plot is set during World War II and follows Neven Novak, a man who, after being released from a concentration camp, returns to occupied Zagreb to find and take his son Zoran. In the meantime, the boy has grown up under the influence of the Ustasha authorities and the educational system that separated him from his father and gradually shaped him according to the regime's ideology.

The central tension of the novel stems not only from escape and danger, but from the painful fact that father and son no longer belong to the same world. Neven must save the child, but in doing so he cannot count on simple recognition or immediate closeness. This is precisely why the title sentence - "Don't turn around, son" - carries a strong emotional charge: it is at the same time a command, protection, and an expression of paternal love in a moment of extreme danger.

Diklić's novel is important because it depicts war not only as a space of action, but also as a space of ideological deformation, loss of trust and destruction of family. In his oeuvre, this is one of the most famous works, and also an example of prose that combines cinematic tension, a clear plot and a strong emotional core. That is why Don't Turn, Son remains a striking book about parental loyalty, childhood in war and the attempt to restore closeness where history has violently interrupted it.