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Friends In Our World - Immigrant and Refugee Friends (Kids)

Try one of these fiction books featuring immmigrants and refugees as the main characters. Each story is intriguing and inspiring!

Muslim girls rise : inspirational champions of our time by Saira Mir

Introduces nineteen Muslim women from all around the world who have found their callings in a vast range of fields, from social justice to competitive sports to the entertainment industry.

Proud : living my American dream by Ibtihaj Muhammad

Shares the life story of the Olympic fencer, including how she overcame feeling out of place in her sport and how she became the first American woman to compete in the Olympics wearing a hijab.

My grandma and me by Mina Javaherbin

"In this big universe full of many moons, I have travelled and seen many wonders, but I have never loved anything or anyone the way I love my grandma. While Mina is growing up in Iran, the center of her world is her grandmother. Whether visiting friends next door, going to the mosque for midnight prayers during Ramadan, or taking an imaginary trip around the planets, Mina and her grandma are never far apart. At once deeply personal and utterly universal, Mina Javaherbin's words make up a love letter of the rarest sort: the kind that shares a bit of its warmth with every reader."--Provided by publisher

Golden domes and silver lanterns : a Muslim book of colors by Hena Khan

In simple rhyming text a young Muslim girl and her family guide the reader through the traditions and colors of Islam

We came to America by Faith Ringgold

Celebrates United States immigration and the country's diverse immigrant heritage.

Nowhere boy by Katherine Marsh

Fourteen-year-old Ahmed, a Syrian refugee living on his own in Brussels, Belgium, meets Max, a thirteen-year-old American boy, and the two form an important friendship.

Islandborn by Junot Díaz

"Lola was just a baby when her family left the Island, so when she has to draw it for a school assignment, she asks her family, friends, and neighbors about their memories of her homeland...and in the process, comes up with a new way of understanding herown heritage"--

The turtle of Oman : a novel by Naomi Shihab Nye

When Aref, a third-grader who lives in Muscat, Oman, refuses to pack his suitcase and prepare to move to Michigan, his mother asks for help from his grandfather, his Siddi, who takes Aref around the country, storing up memories he can carry with him to a new home

The Arabic quilt : an immigrant story by Aya Khalil

When her new classmates tease her, Kanzi finds comfort in wrapping up in a quilt from her teita and writing poetry.

The paper boat : by Thao Lam

"Thao Lam’s signature collage art tells the wordless story of one family’s escape from Vietnam -- a journey intertwined with an ant colony’s parallel narrative. At her home in Vietnam, a girl rescues ants from the sugar water set out to trap them. Later, when the girl’s family flees war-torn Vietnam, ants lead them through the moonlit jungle to the boat that will take them to safety. Before boarding, the girl folds a paper boat from a bun wrapper and drops it into the water, and the ants climb on. Their perilous journey, besieged by punishing weather, predatory birds, and dehydration, before reaching a new beginning, mirrors the family’s own. Impressionistic collages and a moving narrative make this a one-of-a-kind tale of courage, resilience, and hope."--

The boy at the back of the class by Onjali Q Raúf

When quiet, nine-year-old Ahmet arrives in their classroom, a boy and his friends fail to draw him out but try a new plan after learning he is a Syrian refugee

Lucky broken girl by Ruth Behar

In 1960s New York, fifth-grader Ruthie, a Cuban-Jewish immigrant, must rely on books, art, her family, and friends in her multicultural neighborhood when an accident puts her in a body cast.

Lubna and Pebble by Wendy Meddour

"Lubna's best friend is a pebble. Pebble always listens to her stories. Pebble always smiles when she feels scared. But when a lost little boy arrives in the World of Tents, Lubna realizes that he needs Pebble even more than she does." -- From dust jacket.

Illegal by Eoin Colfer

Ebo is alone. His brother, Kwame, has disappeared, and Ebo knows it can only be to attempt the hazardous journey to Europe, and a better life, the same journey their sister set out on months ago. But Ebo refuses to be left behind in Ghana. He sets out after Kwame and joins him on the quest to reach Europe. Ebo's epic journey takes him across the Sahara Desert to the dangerous streets of Tripoli, and finally out to the merciless sea. But with every step he holds on to his hope for a new life, and a reunion with his family --

Santiago's road home by Alexandra Diaz

Fleeing abusive relatives and extreme poverty in Mexico, young Santiago endures being detained by ICE while crossing the border into the United States.

Room for one more by Monique Polak

In Montréal, Canada, in 1942, the war in Europe seems far off to fifteen-year-old Rosetta Wolff until her family takes in Isaac, a war refugee, and everything changes

Where are you from? by Yamile Saied Méndez

When other children and their parents keep asking a young girl where she is from, she puts the same question to her grandfather who describes the land and people from which her family originated.

Story boat by Kyo Maclear

When a sister and brother are forced along with their family to flee their home, they learn to make a new home for themselves--wherever they are.

Flying over water by N Senzai

Twelve-year-old Noura and her family, fleeing war in Syria, have been granted asylum in the United States, but they arrive in Florida to the chaos of the president's Muslim ban; twelve-year-old Jordyn is a member of the Christian church that is sponsoringthe Alwan family, and Noura's student ambassador in middle school; their inevitable culture clash is made far worse by the wave of hate crimes unleashed by the Muslim ban, and personal problems of both girls--Noura's fear of water (Jordyn is a champion swimmer) and Jordyn's worry over her mother's recent miscarriage.

Jimena Pérez can fly by Jorge Argueta

Ten-year-old Jimena loves El Salvador but when gangs threaten to force her to join, she and her mother immigrate to the United States, but are separated at the border

Gittel's journey : an Ellis Island story by Lesléa Newman

"Brings to life a not too distant history of immigration to Ellis Island. When it's time for nine-year-old Gittel and her mother to leave their homeland behind and go to America for the promise of a new life, a health inspection stops any chance of Gittel's mother joining her daughter on the voyage. Knowing she may never see her mother again, Gittel must find the courage within herself to leave her family behind"--

Brother's keeper by Julie (Children's fiction writer) Lee

Twelve-year-old Sora and her eight-year-old brother, Youngsoo, must try to escape North Korea's oppressive Communist regime on their own in 1950. Includes historical notes, photographs of the author's mother, glossary of Korean words, and timeline.

American as paneer pie by Supriya Kelkar

When a racist incident rocks her small Michigan town, eleven-year-old Lekha must decide whether to speak up or stay silent, even as she struggles to navigate her life at home, where she can be herself, and at school, where she is teased about her culture

Inside out & back again by Thanhha Lai

Through a series of poems, a young girl chronicles the life-changing year of 1975, when she, her mother, and her brothers leave Vietnam and resettle in Alabama.

Goodbye, Vietnam by Gloria Whelan

Thirteen-year-old Mai and her family embark on a dangerous sea voyage from Vietnam to Hong Kong to escape the unpredictable and often brutal Vietnamese government.

The keeping quilt by Patricia Polacco

A homemade quilt ties together the lives of four generations of an immigrant Jewish family, remaining a symbol of their enduring love and faith

Other words for home by Jasmine Warga

Sent with her mother to the safety of a relative's home in Cincinnati when her Syrian hometown is overshadowed by violence, Jude worries for the family members who were left behind as she adjusts to a new life with unexpected surprises

Khalil and Mr. Hagerty and the backyard treasures by Tricia Springstubb

Khalil and his family have the upstairs apartment in the house where elderly Mr. Hagerty lives downstairs, and on hot summer days they get to know each other and trade new words, as Khalil plays outside while Mr. Hagerty gardens.

A place to belong by Cynthia Kadohata

Twelve-year-old Hanako and her family, reeling from their confinement in an internment camp, renounce their American citizenship to move to Hiroshima, a city devastated by the atomic bomb dropped by Americans.

Recipient of the National Medal, the nation's highest honor for libraries.