At JRS UK, we believe in the power of books to spark empathy, deepen understanding, and bring us closer to the realities faced by displaced people around the world. Our team has once again shared a diverse selection of books, many of which explore themes of migration, belonging, resilience, and justice
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow – Zoulfa Katouh
Set at the beginning of the war in Syria, this is a poignant and powerful story of hope, resilience and the unbreakable bonds of human family and love. The subject matter means that it’s not an easy read – and even though its set in 2012/13, it could be set today in different contexts of war and conflict across the world; yet Katouh way of writing makes it an unputdownable book, with poetic imagery that will stay with me for many years to come.
Megan Knowles, JRS Northwest Regional Project Coordinator
Blessings
– Chukwuebuka Ibeh
I’ve just started reading Blessings by Chukwuebuka Ibeh. The novel is set in Nigeria and is about a young, sensitive boy who has always been the odd one out in the family. He begins a same-sex relationship with a boy from a nearby village. He gets caught by his conservative father and is sent to a boarding school where the boy struggles with coming of age and navigating his sexuality in a country on a brink of criminalising same-sex relationships. It’s the debut book of a young Nigerian writer. I’ve only just started but very excited to be reading a book written by an African writer about queer experiences in Nigeria!
Mark Dunn, Community Projects Coordinator
Manchester Happened
– Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi
So, it is 12 short stories about Ugandan migrants in Manchester and Kampala (when they come back home from living in the UK). Each story is set in a different time period, and told from a different perspective (there is even one from a stray dog’s point of view). It is funny, explores themes like immigration, racisms and belonging. Highly recommend!
Jasmine Husseini, Senior Destitution Caseworker
Behold the Dreamers
– Imbolo Mbue
Behold the Dreamers by Imbolo Mbue tells the story of a Cameroonian family moving to the United States in search of a better life in the 2000s. It gives an important window onto the experience of people striving to get on with their lives whilst navigating an immigration and asylum system that does not value them and could take it all away. It sees things through the eyes of people who are trying to move forward despite being held in limbo. Additionally, it gives a layered treatment of a Western society’s response to this family, and as such can encourage our own society to do some soul searching. This was a great read!
Sophie Cartwright, Senior Policy Officer
Doughnut Economics – Kate Raworth
Last year I had the chance to hear the economist Kate Raworth speak in London and I felt inspired by her vision and energy to create a better world. I have been enjoying her book Doughnut Economics (2017) which offers a critique of mainstream economics and proposes an alternative way of thinking both about economics but also about society in general. It does so through the symbol of… a doughnut. The Doughnut, she says, is ‘a radically new compass for guiding humanity this century’ (p. 44). It points towards ‘…a future that can provide for every person’s needs while safeguarding the living world on which we all depend’ (p. 45). Her book nourishes hope and helps me to reflect on what it means to work for justice in today’s world.
Dunstan Rodrigues, Community Projects Support Worker
There are rivers in the sky
– Elif Shafak
This is a beautiful story connected by a single drop of water, a lost poem, the Thames and Tigris rivers, and three remarkable and endearing characters. The three main characters are Arthur living in Victorian London, Narin living in Turkey in 2014 and Zaleekhah living in London in 2018, and their stories will inevitably link.
The story based at the edge of the Tigris just over 10 years ago telling the story of a small, persecuted Yazidi community being forced to flee their homeland was poignant. The book begins in ancient Mesopotamia moving all the way to modern day London and I really enjoyed the historic storylines, and I learnt a great deal.
I don’t often read history books or historic novels but I was attracted to this as so much of the story is by the Thames, a river I walk alongside and cross every working day.
I hope to read many more of this author’s books in the next year or two!
Aidan Cantwell, Interim Deputy Director (Operations)
The Street Children of Brazil – Sarah De Carvalho
Through a series of remarkable events, Sarah de Carvalho left her glittering career in film promotion and TV production to join a missionary organisation in Brazil. There she met children from the age of seven living on the streets, taking drugs, stealing to survive and vulnerable to prostitution and gang warfare. This is the remarkable true story of a life transformed. It tells of the incredible work that Sarah founded in the Happy Child Mission. It is a story of immense faith, suffering and love. The children whose stories are revealed in this exceptional book will change the heart of every reader. This new fully updated edition of THE STREET CHILDREN OF BRAZIL brings the story up to date. Fifteen years on, Sarah celebrates the anniversary of the founding of Happy Child, revisits some of the first children she worked with, and reflects on all that God has done.
Fiona Oteng – Senior Fundraising Officer
We hope you enjoy these recommendations! We also invite you to support our Book Appeal and help us provide refugee friends with access to reading materials. Click below to find out more!
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