Alan Gratz

Refugee

A tour de force from acclaimed author Alan Gratz (Prisoner B-3087), this timely -- and timeless -- novel tells the powerful story of three different children seeking refuge.

This was a powerful quote if I'm being honest.

Mel pauze

'I don't have time for games,' he would tell me. 'I'm a man now. ' And when those soldiers said one of us could go free and the other would be taken to a concentration camp, Josef said, 'Take me. ' My brother, just a boy, becoming a man at last.”

Great book, the different perspectives was incredible. Yet, It got a little bit boring for my liking. 

Although separated by continents and decades, Josef, a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany; Isabel, a Cuban girl trying to escape the riots and unrest plaguing her country in 1994; and Mahmoud, a Syrian boy in 2015 whose homeland is torn apart by violence and destruction, embark on harrowing journeys in search of refuge, discovering shocking connections that tie their stories together.

Sarah Sammis

Refugee by Alan Gratz is a collection of three interrelated stories of refugees. There is Josef, a Jewish boy fleeing Germany at the start of World War II. There is Isabel, a Cuban girl leaving her home in 1994 during the riots and unrest. There is Mahmoud who is fleeing Syria for safety in Europe. The stories are interwoven, going in chronological order.

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2017/comm...

this was honestly a really powerful book. it really made me realise how hard the things all the refugees had, and still have, to go through are. it's a really eye opening story that i recommend everyone to read. 

kristin :)

H. Kamran

Meet Josef, a Jewish child whose father is taken to Dachau during the Holocaust. Meet Isabel, a Cuban girl who wishes to be in America. Meet Mahmoud, whose family lives in Syria under the reign of Bashar al-Assad. These three families journey through impossible situations. Where will Josef end up? Will he end up in a concentration camp as well as his father? Will Isabel leave Cuba? Will she ever ever see her friends again? Will Mahmoud be able to get to Germany? Will his family survive the conditions around them? Journey with these three children from three time periods in Refugee.

Afsara Monzur 

So this was the first book I read in 8th grade  because my teacher thought that it would be a great idea to talk about what immigrants go through and why they come to other countries to seek for refuge. This honestly was a great book and I loved it. I believe this was a great book and gave perfect examples about what refugees go through. And  I am sorry for them because all they want is a safer and better life for them or their family and kids. 

abi schroeder

it's an easy read that packs an emotional punch. I like how all of the stories interlink and I think this shines a light on the refugee experience from across the years

Danika Walker

It was alright for a school read. Wouldn't have read it in my own time though.

Nadine 

Sensitively and realistically told without the usual “all lived happily after” that YA often suffers from.

Samantha Seeman

Refugee is a middle grade historical fiction novel that features multiple perspectives of children who live during different points in history. The three stories follow children who are seeking refuge during their specific time period- Josef, a Jewish boy in 1930s Nazi Germany, Isabel, a Cuban girl in Havana in 1994 and Muhamoud, a Syrian boy in 2015. Most of the stories are dangerous and heartbreaking, and span continents but ultimate tie together in the end. So many feels for this book! I actually picked it up because a student told me about it. He was so excited when he was describing it that I just HAD to pick it up, and man he was right. I loved how the author wove the three stories together by the end. I felt that the author did a great job of telling these stories, without sugar-coating the intensity of their situations. I would highly recommend it to any historical fiction fans.

Jeni Enjaian

I absolutely loved this book. Gratz takes three diverse, completely separate stories united only through the fleeing for refuge theme and weaves a compelling narrative that in the end ties everything together in a real, realistic, heart-wrenching way. Everything does not have a happy ending. Quite the contrary. Gratz pulls the reader into the lives of these three children and everyone they meet. I do not know how someone could read this book, really, truly read it and walk away without at least a little bit of compassion for the refugee. Someone who already has that compassion? You may just find your heart singing along.

I highly recommend this book.

Grace Gaswick

The premise of the book is good, but god the writing is terrible. It reads like it's meant for a middle schooler, but I don't know if that was the intended audience.

Refugee

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