We hope these selections serve to educate, and encourage a dialogue on topics of immigration and displacement, as well as spotlight immigrant and refugee experiences from a variety of places, perspectives, and backgrounds.


We Are Displaced: My Journey and Stories From Refugee Girls Around the World by Malala Yousafzai

As an Internally Displaced Person herself, Malala Yousafzai introduces some of the people from her experiences visiting refugee camps. Part memoir, part communal storytelling, Malala explores her own story and shares the personal stories of some of the incredible girls she has met on her journeys. “In a time of immigration crises, war, and border conflicts, We Are Displaced is an important reminder from one of the world’s most prominent young activists that every single one of the 68.5 million currently displaced is a person– often a young person– with hopes and dreams.”

Available formats: Book

 

 

 

 


The Other Side: Stories of Central American Teen Refugees Who Dream of Crossing the Border by Juan Pablo Villalobos

Each chapter brings forth the voice of one young immigrant’s experience as Villalobos interviewed teens at various stages of the immigration process to illustrate their stories. From crossing the Mexican desert, to gang violence, to the “freezers” at ICE detention centers these interviews show the physical and emotional difficulties of their travels. Villalobos has changed certain elements of these stories in order to protect the children’s identities.

Available formats: Book

 

 

 

 


Manuelito by  Elisa Amado

Thirteen-year-old Manuelito is a boy who lives with his family in a tiny village in the Guatemalan countryside. When government-backed drug gangs arrive and take control of the village – fearing their son will be forced to join a gang – Manuelito’s parents make the desperate decision to send him to live with his aunt in the United States. With just a bus ticket and a small amount of cash in hand, Manuelito begins his hazardous journey to Mexico, then the U.S., in search of asylum.

Available formats: Book

 

 

 

 


The Far Away Brothers: Two Teenage Immigrants Making a Life in America by Lauren Markham

The true story about identical twin teenage brothers, Ernesto and Raul Flores, who flee El Salvador’s violence and make a harrowing journey across the Rio Grande, through the Texas desert, and being captured by immigration authorities. Once they finally make into custody of their older brother in California, they struggle to navigate life in America. “The Far Away Brothers is the inspiring true story of two teens making their way in America, a personal look at U.S. immigration policy, and a powerful account of contemporary immigration.”

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 


We Are Here to Stay: Voices of Undocumented Young Adults by Susan Kuklin

The stories of nine courageous young adults who have lived in the United States with a secret that they are not U.S. citizens. These young adults came seeking education, fleeing violence, and escaping poverty. They all have heartbreaking and hopeful stories about leaving their homelands and starting a new life in America, and all are weary of living in the shadows.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 

 


Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card by Sara Saedi

The true story of one teen’s experience growing up in America as an undocumented immigrant from the Middle East. Americanized follows Sara’s progress toward getting her green card, to learning how to tame her unibrow, from the terrifying prospect that she might be kicked out of the country at any time, to the almost-as-terrifying possibility that she might be the only one of her friends without a date to the prom. “This moving, often hilarious story is for anyone who has ever shared either fear.”

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 


I Was Their American Dream by Malaka Gharib

In Malaka Gharib’s triumphant graphic memoir she navigates chasing her parents’ ideals, learning to code-switch between her family’s Filipino and Egyptian customs, adapting to white culture to fit in, crushing on skater boys, and trying to understand the tension between holding onto cultural values and trying to be an all-American kid. “Malaka’s story is a heartfelt tribute to the American immigrants who have invested their future in the promise of the American dream.”

Available formats: Book

 

 

 

 


The Unwanted: Stories of the Syrian Refugees by Don Brown

Don Brown’s graphic novel tells the collective tale of Syrian refugees’ attempt to escape their country’s civil war in search of a better tomorrow and depicts moments of both heartbreaking horror and hope in the ongoing Syrian refugee crisis. “Shining a light on the stories of the survivors, The Unwanted is a testament to the courage and resilience of the refugees and a call to action for all those who read.”

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Hoopla)

 

 

 

 


This Land is Our Land: The History of American Immigration by Linda Barrett Osborne

“This book explores the way government policy and popular responses to immigrant groups evolved throughout U.S. history, particularly between 1800 and 1965. The book concludes with a summary of events up to contemporary times, as immigration again becomes a hot-button issue.”

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Hoopla)

 

 

 

 

 


We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez

Three teens have no choice but to run: from their country, from their families, from their beloved home. Crossing from Guatemala through Mexico, they follow the route of La Bestia, the perilous train system that might deliver them to a better life — if they are lucky enough to survive the journey. With nothing but the bags on their backs and desperation drumming through their hearts, Pulga, Chico, and Pequeña know there is no turning back, despite the unknown that awaits them.

Available formats: Book, Audiobook (Hoopla), Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 

 


You Bring the Distant Near by Mitali Perkins

Tells the story of the immigrant experience for one Indian-American family. Told in alternating teen voices across three generations. From a grandmother worried that her children are losing their Indian identity, to a daughter wrapped up in a forbidden biracial love affair, to a granddaughter social-activist fighting to preserve Bengali tigers. Perkins weaves together the threads of a family growing into an American identity.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (cloudLibrary), Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 

 


The Secret Side of Empty by Maria E. Andreu

As a straight-A student with a budding romance and loyal best friend, M.T.’s life seems apple-pie American, but M.T. hides two facts to the contrary: her full name of Monserrat Thalia and her status as an undocumented immigrant. With senior year of high school kicking into full swing, M.T. sees her hopes for a “normal” future unraveling. And it will take discovering a sense of trust in herself and others for M.T. to stake a claim in the life that she wants.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 

 


Butterfly Yellow by Thanhha Lai 

Hằng has made the brutal journey from Việt Nam and is now in Texas as a refugee. She doesn’t know how she will find the little brother who was taken from her until she meets LeeRoy, a city boy with big rodeo dreams, who decides to help her.

Available formats: Book, Audiobook (Hoopla)

 

 

 

 

 


Dream Country by Shannon Gibney

Dream Country begins in suburban Minneapolis at the moment when seventeen-year-old Kollie Flomo begins to crack under the strain of his life as a Liberian refugee. When his frustration finally spills into violence and his parents send him back to Monrovia to reform school. The story shifts and readers travel back in time to the early twentieth century, to the point of view of Togar Somah, an eighteen-year-old indigenous Liberian on the run from government militias. The story continues to jump around to a total of five generations from a single African-and-American family pursuing an elusive dream of freedom.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Overdrive Media on Demand)

 

 

 


Sadia by Colleen Nelson

Fifteen-year-old Sadia Ahmadi is passionate about one thing: basketball. Sadia’s mom had warned her that navigating high school could be tricky. As much as she hates to admit it, her mom was right. When tryouts for an elite basketball team are announced, Sadia jumps at the opportunity. Her talent speaks for itself. Her head scarf, on the other hand, is a problem; especially when a discriminatory rule means she has to choose between removing her hijab and not playing. Sadia has to find the courage to stand up for herself and fight for what is right — on and off the court.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Hoopla)

 

 

 


When You Ask Me Where I’m Going by Jasmin Kaur

In prose and verse the book explore what it means to be a young woman living in a world that doesn’t always hear her and the effects of European colonization in Punjab. The prose stories follow Kiran as she flees a history of trauma and raises her daughter and Sahaara, while she is living undocumented in North America.

Available formats: Book, Ebook (Hoopla), Audiobook (Hoopla)

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