Refugee

What Refugee is about

Three young people, three eras, one desperate need to find safety. Josef is a German Jew in the 1930s, boarding a ship with his family as the threat of concentration camps closes in. Isabel is a Cuban girl in 1994, setting out on a raft with her family to escape hunger and reach America. Mahmoud is a Syrian boy in 2015 whose home is destroyed by a missile, leaving his family to begin a long trek toward Europe and asylum in Germany.

Each faces real dangers, including drownings, bombings and betrayals. The tone is harrowing and urgent, yet hope keeps surfacing, and the stories are tied together in surprising ways. Written for middle grade readers, the novel was praised for its style and historical accuracy and reached The New York Times Best Seller list. It offers a human way into the long history of people forced to flee.

Questions about Refugee

When was Refugee published?

Refugee by Alan Gratz was first published in 2017.

Was Refugee one of the best books of 2017?

Refugee is #13 on BookWard's Best Books of 2017, out of 73 2017 books that cleared our data bar. 558 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.1 out of 5 (36 ratings); 41 are reading it right now.

Why is Refugee on the Best Books of 2017 list?

558 readers have shelved it on Open Library; readers rate it 4.1 out of 5 (36 ratings); 41 are reading it right now.

More of the best books of 2017

• The Hate U Give Angie Thomas, #1
• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo Taylor Jenkins Reid, #2
• A Court of Wings and Ruin Sarah J. Maas, #3
• One of Us Is Lying Karen M. McManus, #4
• The Dark Prophecy Rick Riordan, #5
• Why We Sleep Matthew P. Walker, #6

See the full Best Books of 2017, the Top 100, or new books on Rising.