Grade 4: Migration Nonfiction Books

Nazir, his father, and older brother live in Myanmar, a country that has experienced many years of violence. As a part of the Rohingya minority group, the family is considered unwelcome in their homeland. Nazir and his father flee by boat to a refugee camp, eventually escaping as refugees to the United States. Interspersed with facts about Myanmar and its people, this narrative tells a story common to many refugees fleeing the country. Readers will learn about the conflict there and how they can help refugees in their communities and around the world who are struggling to find permanent homes.

This is the story of 13-year-old refugee Rachel who, along with her family, flees her home country to escape the persecution they suffer as Christian living in a predominantly Muslim country.

This third book in the Refugee Diaries series follows the story of a boy from Chechnya. In 2001 when Chechens were at war with Russia, he was on his way to school in the capital Grozny when he stepped on a landmine. His leg had to be amputated and eventually he and his father went to the UK for expert treatment and fitting of an artifical leg. As it was unsafe for them to return to Chechnya, the family sought asylum in the UK. Eventually Hamzat's mother and sister joined them in London and now the family are learning to adapt to their new life after the horror of living in a war zone. This poignant and at times harrowing story reveals the bravery of Hamzat and his family in facing and overcoming their circumstances to start a new life.

Sahar misses her life in Yemen before the terrible civil war started. When her home is bombed and she loses her baby brother, she and her family make the dangerous boat journey to a refugee camp. Sahar and her family end up journeying to Canada as refugees, where they adjust to a very different life. Interspersed with facts about Yemen and its people, this narrative tells a story common to many refugees fleeing the country. Readers will learn about the conflict there and how they can help refugees in their communities and around the world who are struggling to find permanent homes.

This picture book tells the story of Kurdish Iranian refugee, Navid. When Navid was four years old his father was forced to flee Iran as there were threats on his life. Told in Navid's own words, the story highlights the terror and hardship that Navid and his mother suffered in their long journey to follow his father to a safe place, and the strange feelings that Navid had towards him when they were reunited.

This picture book tells the story of 12-year-old refugee Juliane. At the age of three Juliane was separated from her mother due to the conflicts happening in her home country of Zimbabwe. Told in Juliane's own words, the story tells of her distress and isolation while growing up in an African orphanage, until an incredible chance meeting with her mother reunites the two of them. They apply for political asylum and are finally able to re-establish a life together in their new host country.

When the violence by militant terrorist group Boko Haram increases in her village in Nigeria, Baseema and her family make the difficult decision to seek refuge in another country. With limited places to go and few people who are able to help, Baseema is unsure of her future. She hopes to find safety in a country where she will be allowed to go to school, and live without constant fear. Interspersed with facts about Nigeria and its people, this narrative tells a story common to many refugees fleeing the country. Readers will learn about the conflict there and how they can help refugees in their communities and around the world who are struggling to find permanent homes.

This is the real-life story of 10-year-old refugee Hamid who flees Eritrea with his mother to escape the war and threats to his family from the goverment.

This picture book tells the story of 10-year-old refugee Ali who, accompanied by his grandmother, flees his home country of Afghanistan to avoid the conflict caused by war. Told in Ali's own words, it documents the feelings of alienation, separation and suffering that war can place on immigrant children and their families, and the thread of hope that can help them overcome their ordeal

Mohammed was born in Kirkuk - the Kurdish part of Iraq. He speaks Kurdish, and now English too. Saddam Hussein persecuted Mohammed's people long before he was born but Mohammed's journey started in October 2000 when Saddam's soldiers came to his house, beat him and his mother and took his father away. Mohammed never saw his father again. This is his story. From that terrible night, to the escape from Iraq by bus, on horseback, in a small boat on a raging river and finally, hiding in a lorry on a ship. It covers his journey from Kirkuk to the Iraq-Iran border, through Iran, into Turkey and then on to England and safety. Mohammed and his mother we were granted 'leave to stay' in England in 2002.