Refugee by Alan Gratz | Book Summary

This novel weaves together the parallel yet distinct stories of three young protagonists across different decades, all struggling to find a place to call home. Josef is a Jewish refugee fleeing Nazi Germany on the MS St. Louis in 1939. Isabel is a Cuban girl fleeing Havana's riots in 1994, whose family, including her pregnant mother and grandfather Lito, flees el norte on a cobbled-together metal boat. Isabel sells her treasured trumpet for gasoline. During the treacherous crossing, Lito sacrifices himself by jumping into the sea to distract the US Coast Guard, allowing Isabel's mother to give birth to her newborn son, Mariano, and enabling Isabel to achieve "dry foot" status on US soil. Mahmoud is a Syrian boy whose family flees Aleppo in 2015 after a missile strike. During their crossing to Greece, their dinghy sinks, and Mahmoud saves his baby sister, Hana, by handing her to strangers in a passing boat. The novel underscores that the desperation and strength of these journeys are based on true historical stories.