Every person on this planet has a right to seek safety – whoever they are, wherever they come from and whenever they are forced to flee. World Refugee Day is an international day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the globe.
It falls each year on June 20 and celebrates the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution. World Refugee Day is an occasion to build empathy and understanding for their plight and to recognize their resilience in rebuilding their lives.
Counting Kindness: Ten Ways To Welcome Refugee Children by Hollis Kurman
Follow the journey of immigrant and refugee children from a leaky boat to a new country, a new school, and new friends in this simple counting book. Ages 3-6.
Lubna And Pebble by Wendy O'Shea-Meddour
In an unforgettable story that subtly addresses the refugee crisis, a young girl must decide if friendship means giving up the one item that brings her comfort during a time of utter uncertainty. Ages 4-8.
My Name Is Not Refugee by Kate Milner
A touching, timely and tender exploration of refuge and migration for the youngest readers, this picture book offers a moving insight into the real journeys being made by children today. Ages 4-8.
Nowhere Boy by Katherine Marsh
Two lonely teens in Belgium, one a Syrian refugee and the other an American, find hope together in this suspenseful story of an unlikely friendship. Ages 10-14.
A Land Of Permanent Goodbyes by Atia Abawi
Besieged by threats and violence, Tareq and his surviving family members travel from Syria to Turkey and Greece in this haunting novel of struggle and resilience. Ages 12+.
The Lines We Cross by Randa Abdel-Fattah
When Michael meets Mina, a brilliant young refugee from Afghanistan, he begins to question the anti-immigrant viewpoint of his parents in this moving YA novel set in Australia. Ages 12+.
We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez
In this award-winning novel, three teens flee north from Guatemala on a dangerous journey, leaving their families and community with the hope for a safer life in the United States. Ages 13+.
The Naked Don't Fear the Water: An Underground Journey with Afghan Refugees by Matthieu Aikins
Matthieu Aikins, a journalist living in Kabul, decides to follow his friend. In order to do so, he must leave his own passport and identity behind to go underground on the refugee trail with Omar. Their odyssey across land and sea from Afghanistan to Europe brings them face to face with the people at heart of the migration crisis: smugglers, cops, activists, and the men, women and children fleeing war in search of a better life.
Those We Throw Away Are Diamonds: A Refugee's Search for Home by Mondiant Dogon
One night when Mondiant Dogon, a Bagogwe Tutsi born in Congo, was very young, his father's lifelong friend, a Hutu man, came to their home with a machete in his hand and warned the family they were to be killed within hours. Dogon's family fled into the bush, where they began a long and dangerous journey into Rwanda. Since that day when he was just three years old, Dogon has called himself a forever refugee.
Tunnel 29: The True Story of an Extraordinary Escape Beneath the Berlin Wall by Helena Merriman
He escaped from one of the world's most brutal regimes. Then, he decided to tunnel back in. In the summer of 1962, a young student named Joachim Rudolph dug a tunnel under the Berlin Wall. Waiting on the other side in East Berlin were dozens of men, women, and children—all willing to risk everything to escape.
I Just Wanted to Save My Family by Stéphan Pélissier
The timely, powerful memoir of a man unjustly charged with a crime for helping his relatives, refugees from Syria. I Just Wanted to Save My Family offers a heartrending window into the lives of those displaced by the Syrian civil war and a scathing critique of the often absurd, unfeeling bureaucracies that determine their fates.
Refugees & Forced Migration: A Canadian Perspective by Catherine Baillie Abidi and Shiva Nourpanah
Drs. Catherine Baillie Abidi and Shiva Nourpanah have created an accessible A-to-Z reference book focused on raising awareness on refugee and forced migration issues in Canada. This one-of-a-kind guide will be an extremely useful tool for refugee aid and settlement practitioners and advocacy groups, as well as for all Canadians eager to better understand the realities of refugees and forced migrants.
