World Refugee Day

World Refugee Day is June 20. As with all holidays, we believe the best way to celebrate is by reading and sharing new knowledge with those around us. Check out these books that touch on the subject of refugees for your library story time, recommendations, and summer reading lists.

Walk Toward the Rising Sun

Walk Toward the Rising Sun By Ger Duany with Garen Thomas

The amazing autobiography of a young Sudanese boy who went from a child soldier and struggling refugee to international peace activist and Hollywood actor.

Sudan, 1980s: Ger Duany knew what he wanted out of life--make his family proud, play with his brothers and sisters, maybe get an education like his brother Oder suggested, and become a soldier for his people when he's old enough. But then his village was attacked by the North Sudanese military, death kept taking his loved ones away, and being a child soldier was not what he thought it would be. Amid heartbreak, death, and violence, can this lost boy find his way to safety?

America, 1990s: After boarding a flight without his family to seek refuge in a foreign country, Ger worked tirelessly to adjust to a new life. It wasn't long before he was thrown into the spotlight, as people discovered his talents for basketball, modeling, and acting. Yet the spotlight wasn't the only thing following him, as he battled the effects of PTSD, resisted the siren call of the excesses of fame, and endured a new kind of racism in America. Amid fame, trauma, and the memory of home, can this lost boy find himself?

More books about refugees!

Random House Teachers and Librarians