Immigrants and refugees in books for children and young adults: Recently received
This guide lists children's books and young adult literature about the experience of immigrants and refugees.
Recently received
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Abuelo, the sea, and me by Ismée Williams; Tatiana Gardel (Ill.)
Publication Date: 2024Lexile measure AD530L; Ages 3-8.
When this grandchild visits her abuelo, he takes her to the ocean. In summer, they kick off their shoes and let the cool waves tickle their toes. In winter, they stand on the cliff and let the sea spray prick their noses and cheeks. No matter the season, hot or cold, their favorite place to spend time together is the beach. It's here that Abuelo is able to open up about his youth in Havana, Cuba. -
Across so many seas by Ruth Behar
Publication Date: 2024Lexile measure 840; Ages 10 and up; Gr.3-7; Newbery award honor; 2025; Sydney Taylor Middle Grade Literature, Silver Medal Award 2025.
In 1492, during the Spanish Inquisition, Benvenida and her family are banished from Spain for being Jewish, and must flee the country or be killed. They journey by foot and by sea, eventually settling in Istanbul. Over four centuries later, in 1923, shortly after the Turkish war of independence, Reina's father disowns her for a small act of disobedience. He ships her away to live with an aunt in Cuba, to be wed in an arranged marriage when she turns fifteen. In 1961, Reina's daughter, Alegra, is proud to be a brigadista, teaching literacy in the countryside for Fidel Castro. Finally, in 2003, Alegra's daughter, Paloma, is fascinated by all the journeys that had to happen before she could be born. A keeper of memories, she's thrilled by the opportunity to learn more about her heritage on a family trip to Spain, where she makes a momentous discovery. -
Home in a lunchbox by Cherry Mo
Publication Date: 2024Ages 4-8; PrK-Gr.3; Caldecott honor, 2025.
When Jun moves from Hong Kong to America, the only words she knows are hello, thank you, I don't know, and toilet. Her new school feels foreign and terrifying. But when she opens her lunchbox to find her favorite meals-like bao, dumplings, and bok choy-she realizes home isn't so far away after all. -
Lost in the Empire City by Avi
Publication Date: 2024Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
When Santo's father left their tiny town in Italy for America, he made Santo promise to keep their family together until he has enough money to bring the rest of them to the US. It takes a few years, but Mama finally gets word that their family can join Papa. Santo couldn't be more excited to go to America--and to see his father again. However, Santo gets separated from his mother and siblings at Ellis Island, and he is left to fend for himself on the mean streets of Manhattan. -
Juan y Yun Tienen un plan by María Fernanda Heredia; Roger. Ycaza (Ill.)
Publication Date: 2024Ages 7-9; Gr.3-4.
Juan is very nervous because he has just emigrated to a new country, so he is new to school. To make things even worse, a classmate begins to harass him relentlessly from day one. In a short time, Juan passes from shame to anger, and then to the desire for revenge. At the same time, he begins to cultivate a beautiful friendship and, with the support of his family, learn to cope with his father's absence. -
Kareem between by Shifa Saltagi Safadi
Publication Date: 2024Ages 8-12; Gr.3-7.
This heartfelt coming-of-age novel in verse tells the powerful story of a seventh-grade Syrian American boy and his struggles, big and small, as he navigates middle school. -
Leo's first vote! by Christina Soontornvat; Isabel Roxas (Ill.)
Publication Date: 2024AD590L; Ages 4-8; PrK-Gr.3.
Get out the vote! In this kid-friendly picture book introduction to voting and elections, Leo's father teaches him about the importance of every single vote, and how to use their voices to uplift their community. Leo's dad is voting in his first election as a naturalized US citizen, and he promises to take Leo to the polls with him. Leo can't wait! But, after his cousin Ray casts doubt on the importance of a single vote, it'll take Leo's class mock election results, as well as a talk with his dad to convince him that each and every vote matters. -
Homeland: my father dreams of PalestineHomeland by Hannah Moushabeck; Reem Madooh (Ill.)
Publication Date: 2023Lexile measure AD970L; Ages 4-8; K-Gr.3.
As bedtime approaches, three young girls eagerly await the return of their father who tells them stories of a faraway homeland--Palestine. Through their father's memories, the Old City of Jerusalem comes to life: the sounds of juice vendors beating rhythms with brass cups, the smell of argileh drifting through windows and the sight of doves flapping their wings toward home. -
These olive trees: a Palestinian family's story by Aya Ghanameh
Publication Date: 2023Ages 3-6.
It's 1967 in Nablus, Palestine. Oraib loves the olive trees that grow outside the refugee camp where she lives. Each harvest, she and her mama pick the small fruits and she eagerly stomp stomp stomps on them to release their golden oil. Olives have always tied her family to the land, as Oraib learns from the stories Mama tells of a home before war. But war has come to their door once more, forcing them to flee.
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- Last Updated: May 8, 2025 2:12 PM
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