Immigrant & Refugee Experience Books
A Modest List (in progress (01DEC22) to be sure here, and industry-wide. note: *=I’ve read it.
organized into: picture book, juvenile novel, juvenile graphic novel, juvenile/teen non-fiction, ya novels, ya graphic novels, grown-up graphic novels.
PICTURE BOOK
Abery, Julie. Sally Deng, illus. Yusra Swims [Syria]
Adewumi, Tanitoluwa. w/ Michelle Lord. Tani’s New Home: A Refugee Finds Hope and Kindness in America [Nigeria/US]
Agee, Jon. The Wall in the Middle of the Book.
Alabed, Bana. Nez Riaz, illus. My Name Is Bana. [Syria]
Alko, Selina. I Is for Immigrant
*Andros, Camille. Illus. Julie Morstad. The Dress and the Girl. [Greek Island/US]
*Arias, Patricia de. Laura Borràs, illus. Marwan’s Journey [?, transl. from Spanish]
Betancourt-Perez, Jessica. Karen Lynn Williams. Gina Maldonado, illus. A Thousand White Butterflies. [Colombia/US]
Buitrago, Jairo. Rafael Yockteng, Illus., Elisa Amado, transl. Two White Rabbits [Mexico/US, transl. from Spanish]
Bunting, Eve. Ted Lewin, illus. One Green Apple. [? (Muslim)/US]
Bowles, David. Oscar Emmanuel Fabela, illus. My Two Border Towns. [Mexico-US]
Briseño, Stephen. Magdalena Mora, illus. The Notebook Keeper: A Story of Kindness from the Border. [Mexico/US]
*Choi, Yangsook. The Name Jar [Korea/US]
Danticat, Edwidge, Leslie Staub, illus. Mama’s Nightingale: A Story of Immigration and Separation. [Haiti/US]
De Anda, Diane. Sue Cornelison. Mango Moon. [deported parent]
De la Peña, Matt. Christian Robinson, illus. Carmela Full of Wishes. [dreamers]
Del Rizzo, Suzanne. My Beautiful Birds. [Syria/?]
*Díaz, Junot. Leo Espinosa, illus. Islandborn [children of immigrants (diverse)]
Danawi, Mohamed. Ruaida Mannaa, illus. The Blue Scarf. [author: Lebanon/US via Canada]
Farish, Terry. Ken Daley. Joseph’s Big Ride. [Africa/US]
Fleischman, Paul. Bagram Ibotoulline, Illus. Matchbox Diary. [Italy/US]
González Hoang, Zara. A New Kind of Wild [rural/urban like Puerto Rico/NYC]
Gouichoux, René. Zaü, Illus. Idriss and His Marble. [in Africa]
*Gundersheimer, Ben (Mr. G). Noar Lee Naggan. Lilah Tov Good Night.
Heighton, Steven. Melissa Iwai, illus. The Stray and the Strangers (ages 7-10) [Middle East to Greece via Turkey]
Hinojosa, Victor. Coert Voorhees. Susan Guevara, illus. A Journey Toward Hope. [Lat Am/US]
Hoffman, Mary. Karin Littlewood, Illus. The Colour of Home [Somalia/England]
Hosseini, Khaled. Dan Williams, Illus. Sea Prayer.
Khalil, Aya. The Arabic Quilt: An Immigrant Story. [Egypt/US]
Kim, Anna. Danbi Leads the School Parade. [Korea/US]
*Kim, Patti. Sonia Sanchez, Illus. Here I Am [Asia/NYC]
Kobald, Irena. Freya Blackwood, Illus. My Two Blankets [?/?]
Lam, Thao. The Paper Boat. [Vietnam]
*Maclear, Kyo. Rashin Kheiriyeh. Story Boat [?/?]
Mancillas, Mónica. Erika Meza, illus. Mariana and Her Familia [visiting grandparents abroad]
Manoli, Constantia. Magdalena Mora, illus. Tomatoes in My Lunchbox. [Cyprus/UK+US]
Mayper, Monica. Jaime Kim, illus. Night on the Sand.
*Meddour, Wendy. Daniel Egnéus, Illus. Lubna and Pebble [?/?]
Mills, Debora. Alfredo Alva. Claudia Navarro, illus. La Frontera: El viaje con papa- My Journey with Papa. [Mexico/US]
Milway, Katie Smith. Shane Evans, illus. The Banana-Leaf Ball. [East Africa/Tanzania]
Morales, Areli. Luisa Uribe. Areli is a Dreamer.
Munsch, Robert N., Saoussan Askar. Rebecca Green, Illus. From Far Away [Lebanon/Canada]
Naylor-Ballesteros, Chris. The Suitcase [Animals, Hospitality]
*Newman, Lesléa. Amy June Bates, Illus. Gittel’s Journey. [Europe/NYC, Jewish HF]
O’Brien, Anne Sibley. I’m New Here [Somalia, Guatemala, & Korea/US]
Patel, Meenal. Priya Dreams of Marigolds and Masala. [India/US]
*Perkins, Mitali. Lavanya Naidu. Home is in Between [India/US]
Phi, Bao. Illus. Thi Bui. A Different Pond [Vietnam/Minneapolis]
Polacco, Patricia. The Keeping Quilt. [Russian Jewish]
Rahman, Raya. and Inshra Sakhawat Russell, illus. The Unexpected Friend: A Rohingya Children’s Story
Raúf, Onjali Q. The Boy at the Back of the Class
Redondo, Susana Gomez, Illus. Sonja Wimmer. The Day Saida Arrived. [translated from Arabic]
*Robinson, Christian. Another [?/?]
*Ruurs, Margriet. Nizar Ali Badr, Illus. Stepping Stones: A Refugee Family’s Journey [Syria/Europe]
*Sanna, Francesca. Me and My Fear [?/US?]
*Sanna, Francesca. The Journey [?/?]
Say, Alan. Grandfather’s Journey. [Japan, US]
Shamsi, Shirin. Tarun Lak, illus. The Moon from Dehradun. [Partition of British India]
Shamsi, Shirin. Manal Mirza, illus. Zahra’s Blessing: A Ramadan Story. [refuge/hospitality]
Surat, Michele Maria. Vo-Dinh Mai. Angel Child, Dragon Child. [Vietnam/US]
*Tonatiuh, Duncan. Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote: A Migrant’s Tale [Mexico/US]
Torres Sanchez, Jenny. André Ceolin, illus. With Lots of Love [Guatemala/US]
Umrigar, Thrity. Khoa Le, Illus. Sugar in Milk [folktale. author: Parsi/India]
*Vaught, Susan. Illus. Kelly Murphy. Together We Grow [animal tale of refuge/hospitality]
Watanabe, Issa. Migrants [animals]
Williams, Karen Lynn, Khadra Mohammed. Doug Chayka, Illus. Four Feet, Two Sandals [Afghanistan/Pakistan]
Williams, Karen Lynn, Khadra Mohammed. Catherine Stock, Illus. My Name Is Sangoel [Sudan/US]
Yaccarino, Dan. All the Way to America: The Story of a Big Italian Family and a Little Shovel. [Italy/US]
*Yang, Kao Kalia. The Most Beautiful Thing [Hmong refugee, Laos]
Young, Rebecca. Illus. Matt Ottley. Teacup [?/?]
JUVENILE NOVEL
*Agosín, Marjorie. I Lived on Butterfly Hill [Chile/US].
*Alvarez, Julia. Return to Sender [Mexico/Vermont]
Applegate, Katherine. Home of the Brave [Africa/Minnesota]
Arnold, Marie. The Year I Flew Away [Haiti/NYC]
Binks, Danielle. The Year the Maps Changed [Kosovo]
Bowles, David. They Call Me Güero [verse; Mexico-US] 10-14
Bowles, David. They Call Her Fregona. [verse; Mexico-US] 10-14
Cervantes, Angela. Gaby, Lost and Found. [deported parent]
Cisneros, Ernesto. Efrén Divided [deported parent]
Cottrell Boyce, Frank. The Unforgotten Coat [Mongolia/Liverpool]
Dassau, A.M. Boy Everywhere [Syria/UK]
Diaz, Alexandra. Santiago’s Road Home [Mexico/US]
Diaz, Alexandra. The Only Road [Guatemala/US]
Dobbs, Alda P. The Other Side of the River [Mexico/US]
Dumas, Firoozeh. It Ain’t So Awful, Falafel. [Iran/US]
Ellis, Deborah. Mud City [Afghanistan/Pakistan]
Fleming, Candace. Lowji Discovers America. [Bombay/Illinois]
Flores-Galbis, Enrique. 90 Miles to Havana [Cuba/Miami]
Fraillon, Zana. The Bone Sparrow. [Rohingya/Australia]
*Gonzalez, Christina. The Red Umbrella. [Cuba/US]
*Gratz, Alan. Refugee. [Germany, Cuba, Syria/Puerto Rico, US, Germany]
Guerrero, Diane. Erica Moroz. My Family Divided. [deported parent]
Han, Jenny. Clara Lee and the Apple Pie Dream [Korea-US]
*Hiranandani, Veera. The Night Diary. [Pakistan/India]
Johnston, Tony. Maria Elena Fontanot de Rhoads. Beast Rider. [Mexico/US]
*Lai, Thanhha. Inside Out & Back Again [Vietnam/Alabama] (in verse)
Lombard, Jenny. Drita, My Homegirl [Kosovo/NYC]
Marsh, Katherine. Nowhere Boy [Syria/Belgium]
McGee, Lynn. Jose Pelaez. Starting Over in Sunset Park. [Dominican Republic/NYC]
Park, Linda Sue. A Long Walk to Water [Sudan/US]
Pérez, Celia C. The First Rule of Punk [Mexico/Chicago]
*Pinkney, Andrea Davis. The Red Pencil [Sudan] (in verse)
Raúf, Onjali Q . Boy at the Back of the Class. [Syria/UK]
Resau, Laura. Star in the Forest. [deported parent]
Rose, Judith Robbins. Look Both Ways in the Barrio Blanco [Mexico/US]
Ross, Susan L. Kiki and Jacques [Somalia/Maine]
*Ryan, Pam Muñoz. Esperanza Rising [Mexico/California]
Ryan, Pam Muñoz. Mañanaland. [magical realism; Spanish]
Saeed, Jamal, & Sharon McKay. Yara’s Spring. [Syria]
Salazar, Aida. Land of the Cranes [verse; US/detention/Mexico; deportation]
Senzai, N. H. Escape from Aleppo. [Syria/?]
Senzai, N. H. Shooting Kabul [Afghanistan/SF]
Warga, Jasmine. Other Words for Home. [verse; Syria/US]
Yang, Kelly. Front Desk [China/California]
JUVENILE GRAPHIC NOVEL
Garland, Sarah. Azzi in Between [?/England]
*Tan, Shaun. The Arrival
*Colfer, Eoin. Andrew Donkin, Giovanni Rigano. Illegal. [Ghana/Europe]
Jamieson, Victoria. Omar Mohamed. When the Stars are Scattered. [Somalia/Kenya]
Lai, Remi. Pie in the Sky [Singapore/Australia]
Pimienta, Jose. Twin Cities [Mexico-US]
JUVENILE/YA (+) NON-FICTION
Borden, Louise. Illus. Allan Drummond. The Journey that Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Margaret & H.A. Rey [France/]
Bunting, Eve. How Many Days to America?: A Thanksgiving Story [Caribbean/US]
Cha, Dia. Dia’s Story Cloth: The Hmong People’s Journey to Freedom [Laos/Thailand, US]
Coy, John. Wing Young Huie, Photog. Their Great Gift: Courage, Sacrifice, and Hope in A New Land [immigrants to US]
Dominguez, Angela. Sing, Don’t Cry [Mexico/US]
Ellis, Deborah. Children of War: Voices of Iraqi Refugees [Iraq, Jordan, Syria]
Greder, Armin. Mediterranean. [Europe] 8+
Kuntz, Doug. Lost and Found Cat: The true Story of Kunkush’s Incredible Journey [Iraq/Greece]
Leatherdale, Mary Beth. Illus. Eleanor Shakespeare. Stormy Seas: Stories of Young Boat Refugees.
McCarney, Rosemary A. Where Will I Live? [Lebanon, Rwanda, Iraq, Niger, Hungary, Jordan, & Greece, etc]
Milway, Katie Smith. Illus. Shane W. Evans. The Banana-Leaf Ball: How Play Can Change the World [Tanzania]
Mochizuki, Ken. Illus. Dom Lee. Passage to Freedom: The Sugihara Story [Lithuania/Japan]
+Nazario, Sonia. Enrique’s Journey: The True Story of a Boy Determined to Reunite with His Mother. [Honduras/US]
+Saedi, Sara. Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card. [Iran/US]
Shulevitz, Uri. Chance: Escape from the Holocaust [Poland/Paris by way of Russia & Central Asia]
St. John, Warren. Outcasts United: The Story of a Refugee Soccer Team that Changed a Town. [multiple/Georgia]
Ventura, Marne. Beidi Guo, Illus. Kunkush: The True Story of A Refugee Cat [Iraq/Greece]
Williams, Mary. Illus. R. Gregory Christie. Brothers in Hope: The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan [Sudan/]
Winter, Jeanette. The World Is Not A Rectangle: A Portrait of Architect Zaha Hadid [Baghdad]
YOUNG ADULT FICTION
Abawi, Atia. A Land of Permanent Goodbyes. [Syria/Turkey, Greece]
Abdel-Fattah, Randa. When Michael Met Mina. [Afghanistan/Australia]
Bravo, Shay. Historically Inaccurate
Buss, Fran Leeper; w/ Daisy Cubias. Journey of the Sparrows. [El Salvador/Mexico, US] 10-14
Crew, Linda. Children of the River. [Cambodia/US]
Farish, Terry. The Good Braider. [Sudan/ Cairo, Maine] (in verse)
Fraillon, Zana. The Bone Sparrow. [Rohingya, Australia]
Grande, Reyna. Across a Hundred Mountains [Mexico/US]
Hughes, Dean. Displaced. [Syrian refugees]
Said, Al edited Come on In: 15 Stories About Immigration and Finding Home
Torres Sanchez, Jenny. We Are Not From Here. [Guatemala/US]
Villasante, Alexandra. Grief Keeper. [El Salvador/US]
Sepetys, Ruta. Salt to the Sea. [E. Prussia]
Zoboi, Ibi. American Street. [Haiti/US]
YOUNG ADULT GRAPHIC NOVEL
Brown, Don. The Unwanteds: Stories of the Syrian Refugees
YOUNG ADULT NON-FICTION
Kuklin, Susan. We Are Here to Stay
Mardini, Yusra. Butterfly: From Refugee to Olympian – My Story of Rescue, Hope, and Triumph [Syria]
Nazario, Sonia. Enrique’s Journey. [Honduras/US]
Saedi, Sara. Americanized: Rebel Without a Green Card. [Iran]
St. John, Warren. Outcasts United: The Story Of A Refugee Soccer Team That Changed A Town
FOR THE GROWN-UPS – GRAPHIC NOVELS
Abdelrazaq, Leila. Baddawi [Palestine/Lebanon]
Bui, Thi. The Best We Could Do. [Vietnam/US]
Greder, Armin. The Island.
Spiegelman, Art. Maus [German/US] NF
Satrapi, Marjane Persepolis [Iran] NF
leslie d. 