Open Books 2024: RefugeesUnpublished

Share

An extraordinary true account of the enormous tragedy of the Syrian civil conflict. Since the revolution-turned-civil war in Syria began in 2011, over 500,000 civilians have been killed and more than 12 million Syrians have been displaced. Rania Abouzeid, one of the foremost journalists on...

NATIONAL BESTSELLER * "The lives of a Jewish boy escaping Nazi-occupied Europe and a mother and daughter fleeing twenty-first-century El Salvador intersect in this ambitious, intricate novel about war and immigration" (People), from the author of A Long Petal of the Sea and...

When a rusty cargo ship carrying Mahindan and five hundred fellow refugees from Sri Lanka's bloody civil war reaches Vancouver's shores, the young father thinks he and his six-year-old son can finally start a new life. Instead, the group is thrown into a detention processing center, with government...

Jewish refugee Ella Rosenthal has finally found a safe haven. It has been three years since she and her little sister, Hanni, left their parents to flee Nazi Germany, and they have been pursued and adrift in the chaos of war ever since. Now, they shelter among one hundred other young refugees in a...

The moving stories of children in migration--in their own words. "In Spanish and in English, a devastating first-person account of children's experiences in detention at the southern U.S. border.... A powerful, critical document only made more heartbreaking...

Through a series of miraculous events, a Chinese family, living in Vietnam, joins the ranks of "boat people"and overcomes oppressive struggles to raise its children in the foreign culture of America.

When three bodies wash up on the beach of a remote island, the locals must decide whether they should uncover the truth or let the mystery die with the victims.  Nestled in an overlooked part of the Mediterranean, Dog Island is home to a quiet and untouched community that has long...

A moving allegory of immigration and hospitality.   One day, the brothers Zzli come to the doorstep of a little girl named Welcome. Welcome has plenty of room in her big, empty house, and the travelers-who have come from far away-make good pancakes and even better company....

Just in time for the 10th anniversary ofBetween Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys's award-winning debut novel, and inspiration for the major motion pictureAshes in the Snow, is now a gorgeous graphic novel! From #1New York Timesand international bestselling...

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK OF THE YEAR * From the widely acclaimed, bestselling author of American War--a beautifully written, unrelentingly dramatic, and profoundly moving novel that looks at the global refugee crisis through the eyes of a child. "Told from...

The story of a Palestinian family's ties to the land, and how one young girl finds a way to care for her home, even as she says goodbye. It's 1967 in Nablus, Palestine. Oraib loves the olive trees that grow outside the refugee camp where she lives. Each harvest, she...

A 2019 NEWBERY HONOR BOOK "A gripping, nuanced story of the human cost of conflict appropriate for both children and adults."                                          ...

An illustrated book on the refugee crisis that will break your heart in under 48 pages, from the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Kite Runner, A Thousand Splendid Suns, and And the Mountains Echoed. "Intensely moving. . .Powerfully...

Abdi Nor Iftin first fell in love with America from afar. As a child, he learned English by listening to American pop and watching action films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. When U.S. marines landed in Mogadishu to take on the warlords, Abdi cheered the arrival of these Americans, who seemed as...

A National Book Award Finalist, this remarkable graphic novel is about growing up in a refugee camp, as told by a former Somali refugee to the Newbery Honor-winning creator of Roller Girl. Omar and his younger brother, Hassan, have spent most of their lives in Dadaab,...

As a girl and as part of an ethnic minority in Afghanistan, Freshta Tori Jan was persecuted relentlessly. Her family faced kidnappings and daily murder attempts on the bus, on the way to school, in the workplace, and beyond. Freshta's school was shut down by the Taliban, and many of her friends were...

From "an important writer in every sense" (David Foster Wallace), a novel that imagines a future in which sweeping civil conflict has forced America's young people to flee its borders, into an unwelcoming world. One such American is Ron Patterson, who finds himself on distant...

Five refugees recount their courageous journeys to America -- and the unimaginable struggles that led them to flee their homelands -- in a powerful work from the author of Beyond Magenta and We Are Here to Stay. "From 1984, when I was born, until July 16, 2017,...

Trapped in an enemy tunnel, a young refugee experiences the Korean War firsthand in this searing story of survival, loss, and hope, a companion to the Freeman Award-winning novel Brother's Keeper. Myung-gi knows war is coming- War between North and South Korea. Life in...

This unforgettable novel puts human faces on the Syrian war with the immigrant story of a beekeeper, his wife, and the triumph of spirit when the world becomes unrecognizable. "A beautifully crafted novel of international significance that has the capacity to have us open our...

A moving and sensitive children's book exploring a child's experience living in refugee accommodation in Ireland. School Library Journal, "Best Books 2023" Bank Street Best Children's Books 2024 Azari's...

A Finalist for the 2019 Kirkus Prize in Nonfiction "Nayeri combines her own experience with those of refugees she meets as an adult, telling their stories with tenderness and reverence." --The New York Times Book Review "Nayeri weaves her empowering personal story...

An astonishing story that puts a human face on the ongoing debate about immigration reform in the United States, now updated with a new Epilogue and Afterword, photos of Enrique and his family, an author interview, and more--the definitive edition of a classic of contemporary America ...

A Real Simple Must-Read Book of Summer 2023 "Mai Nguyen has proven herself to be a real standout." --Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author A tender, humorous, and page-turning debut about a Vietnamese Canadian family in Toronto who will do...

In January 2017, Donald Trump signed an executive order stopping entry to the United States from seven predominantly Muslim countries and dramatically cutting the number of refugees allowed to resettle in the United States each year. The American people spoke up, with protests, marches, donations...

"Beautiful and heartrending" fiction set in Vietnam and America from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sympathizer (Joyce Carol Oates, The New Yorker) In these powerful stories, written over a period of twenty years and set in both Vietnam and...

A gripping story of a boy's escape from Communist Vietnam by boat, based on the author's own experience. It's 1980, and 12-year-old Tho Pham lives with his family in South Vietnam. He spends his afternoons playing soccer and cricket fighting with his friends, but life is slowly...

Finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Named a Best of Book of the Year by The Economist and Foreign Affairs Los Angeles Times Book Prize Finalist The Dadaab refugee camp is many things: to the charity workers, it's a humanitarian crisis; to the...

2023 Christopher Award Winner 2024 Excellence in Religion Reporting Award Winner for Nonfiction Eggplant seeds, a lullaby in a vanishing language, an embroidered dress. When people flee their homes, the things they save speak of beauty and suffering and the indomitable human spirit....

Two brothers fight to reunite amidst the turmoil of the Syrian War. Since the passing of their father, Omar has tried--and in his little brother Sufyan's eyes, failed--to be the man of his family of Syrian refugees. As Omar waits in line for rations, longing...

In August, 1992, a boy and his mother flee the war in Yugoslavia and arrive in Germany. Six months later, the boy's father joins them, bringing a brown suitcase, insomnia, and a scar on his thigh. Sasa Stanisic's Where You Come From is a novel about this family, whose world is uprooted...

"Mark Sullivan has done it again! The Last Green Valley is a compelling and inspiring story of heroism and courage in the dark days at the end of World War II." --Kristin Hannah, #1 New York Times bestselling author From the author of the #1 bestseller Beneath a...

Finalist, Governor General's Literary Award, Translation Each year, more than 400 minors arrive alone in Canada requesting refugee status. They arrive without their parents, accompanied by no adult at all. Alone relates the journey of three of them: Afshin, Alain and Patricia. Their...

A New York Times bestseller * Nominated for the National Book Award for Fiction * Ocean Vuong's debut novel is a shattering portrait of a family, a first love, and the redemptive power of storytelling New York Times Readers Pick: 100 Best Books of the 21st Century ...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * "The plot provided by the universe was filled with starvation, war and rape. I would not--could not--live in that tale."   Clemantine Wamariya was six years old when her mother and father began to speak in whispers, when neighbors began to...

A gorgeously written, hopeful middle grade novel in verse about a young girl who must leave Syria to move to the United States, perfect for fans of Jason Reynolds and Aisha Saeed. Jude never thought she'd be leaving her beloved older brother and father behind, all the way across the...

A young British woman working in a book bindery gets a chance to pursue knowledge and love when World War I upends her life in this new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of the Reese's Book Club pick The Dictionary of Lost Words. "Williams spins an...

Nobel Peace Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Malala Yousafzai turns the faceless statistics and endless news stories about displacement into real people--introducing a small fraction of the millions worldwide who have fled home in this powerful and...

NPR Books We Love 2021 | Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2021 | Booklist Best of 2021 | Booklist Editors' Choice: Adult Titles | NYT Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Books of 2021 | Washington Independent Review of Books 51 Favorite Books of 2021 "On Fragile Waves is a...