Task #19: Read a book by or about a refugee

[Westiegirl]

Would Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli count? It talks about children refugees and they play an important role but they aren't the main character.

[Bonnie G.]

Westiegirl wrote: "Would Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli count? It talks about children refugees and they play an important role but they aren't the main character."

I would say it counts - its definitely about the children crossing the border, even if not told from their perspective.

[L Y N N]

I can highly recommend A Long Walk to Water: Based on a True Story by Linda Sue Park! It is a juvenile/YA book that is short but powerful, IMO. And I loved how Park used dual timelines to present Nya and Salva's stories.

[Emerging]

Does anyone know whether A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra is a fit for this? Thanks!

[Bonnie G.]

Emerging wrote: "Does anyone know whether A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra is a fit for this? Thanks!"

I don't recall any immigration of any kind in the book, but it was excellent.

[Emerging]

Bonnie G. wrote: "Emerging wrote: "Does anyone know whether A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra is a fit for this? Thanks!"

I don't recall any immigration of any kin..."
Thank you, Bonnie! You are always so helpful. :)

[Bonnie G.]

Thank you! Glad I could help.

[Octavia]

I read Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai for this. It's a children's novel in verse, about a ten year old refugee girl and her family being evacuated from Saigon in the middle of the Vietnam War, and eventually settling in Alabama. It's based on the author's own experiences as a child, after undergoing the same journey, so it's both about a refugee and by a refugee, and it was excellent.

[Tiffany]

Would And the Mountains Echoed count? In the description it does describe moving from country to country but its unclear why and I don't want to spoil myself.

[Sara]

If anyone is looking for a poetry option, I read Deaf Republic by Ilya Kaminsky. Very powerful and hard hitting.

[Emerging]

Still exploring options for this prompt. Does anyone know if Washington Black by Esi Edugyan is a fit?

[Pam]

Washington Black is a fit; a great part of the book is about him feeling persecution. I Read Washington Black got the Read Harder Challenge last year. I read The Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar for this challenge.

[Bonnie G.]

Washington Black is an immigrant, but not a refugee that I recall. Maybe I forgot though.

[Bonnie G.]

Washington Black is an immigrant, but not a refugee that I recall. Maybe I forgot though.

[Bonnie G.]

Washington Black is, eventually, an immigrant, but not a refugee that I recall. Maybe I forgot though.

[Bonnie G.]

Washington Black is, eventually, an immigrant, but not a refugee that I recall. Maybe I forgot though.

[Bonnie G.]

Washington Black is, eventually, an immigrant, but not a refugee that I recall. Maybe I forgot though.

[Emerging]

Thanks for weighing in, Sat and Bonnie. I think I might continue to save this prompt for later in the year and see what crosses my path. I'm looking forward to when the libraries reopen. One of my Read Harder strategies is to check out a bunch of books for a prompt and then choose between them.

[Pam]

Emerging - if you’re interested in eBooks and or Audiobooks, try the free Libby aap. You enter any library cards you have, and can then check out ebooks and audiobooks from your library on the aap. I love it, especially listening to books on my commute.

[Teresa]

I read Parvana's Journey, the second in a trilogy about an Afghani girl who became a refugee during one of the ongoing wars there.

[Jasmine's]

I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

great read

[Emerging]

I've been bouncing around with this one quite a bit. Now I'm thinking of possibly doing One Goal: A Coach, a Team, and the Game that Brought a Divided Town Together by Amy Bass. I only have four tasks left, including this one!

[Risa]

There is currently a sale on the Kindle version of "The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir" - $1.99 on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XKWJR94?...

[Sherri]

Run Me To Earth by Paul Yoon. I gave it 4 stars. I liked it. I knew about Laos being a child of the Vietnam War but I don't think I had ever read a book about it. Especially involving the children.

[Shelley]

I read A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea about a North Korean refugee. I've read a few North Korean escape stories and his is different. Probably because he actually moved there when he was 13 from Japan and his time now back in Japan has not been great. The anger and bitterness drips through the whole book (not that I blame him).

[Coco]

I read No Friend But The Mountains by Behrouz Boochani. This book was typed on a cell phone from Manu prison when Boochani tried to enter Australia illegally. It details the experience of being in limbo and questions the humanity of such procedures.

[Mariah]

I’m reading Fascism: A Warning by Madeline Albright, who arrived in the US as a refugee from Czechoslovakia in 1948. Here’s an email from her to the Obama White House prior to the UN Refugee Summit in 2016: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/...

[Emerging]

I settled on Home of the Brave by Katherine Applegate for this one and just started it today. Good so far!

[Gail]

I read How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child and found it really well done.

[Meg]

I read a beautiful graphic novel, and I'd strongly recommend it to everyone! (It would also fit a middle grade book that doesn’t take place in the US or the UK or graphic memoir): When Stars Are Scattered

[Caitlin]

I'm reading Refugee by Alan Gratz. It is perhaps a little on the nose, but a wonderful YA telling of refugee experiences.

[Janice]

Mau's Last Dancer

[Jenny]

I'm still trying to go for the bonus task of all books being by LGBT+ authors, which I think would also add a really important and interesting element to this prompt as I want to know more about people who are refugees because of their sexuality and gender identity. I found Discourses On LGBT Assylum In The UK which looks fascinating, but although I see the author is a prfoesser of LGBT studies, I can't see whether he is LGBT himself. Though he uses the word 'queer' which I know many of my fellow LGBT people think shouldn't be used by cishet people, so perhaps that's evidence? Does anyone know more about this?

[Bonnie G.]

Jenny wrote: "I'm still trying to go for the bonus task of all books being by LGBT+ authors, which I think would also add a really important and interesting element to this prompt as I want to know more about pe..."

If you have not read it, Before Night Falls is wonderful.

[Jenny]

Oh, thank you so much! I'll see if I can get hold of it!

[Su]

Does Empire of the sun count?

[Bonnie G.]

Jenny wrote: "Oh, thank you so much! I'll see if I can get hold of it!"

I love having great reading experiences, and its always great to share a really special book with others. Hope you find the book and that you also find it special.

[Virginia]

I read Map of Salt and Stars for this prompt.

[Sheri]

I read Exit West, it's fictional with a bit of magical realism, but really focuses on the experience of being a refugee and living with the sometimes hostile reactions of the places they find themselves in, and how to build a new life in it.

[Alicja]

I will be reading We Have Always Been Here: A Queer Muslim Memoir

[Karen]

I read Girl At War by Sara Novic. It’s a true story about a Balkan girl who lived in peace one day and unspeakable horror the next. More turns in her life after that, but I don’t want to give too much away.

[Sneha]

I read and recommend Lost Children Archive

[Meredith]

Call Me American: A Memoir is the incredibly moving story of a Somali refugee's escape to America. The audio version is beautifully done. I'm surprised it hasn't been mentioned yet!