Welcome to our online book club for grades 5 - 8! We are excited for you to join us in our discussion for Refugee by Alan Gratz.
Along with a free copy of the book, you will receive a review page. You can tell us what you thought of the book! You will also receive a flyer for this website, a questions page to consider, activity pages, and an information page with cool links related to the book!
Please remember that we have a limited number of kits available, so it's first come, first serve. If you have any special requests or need accommodations, please let Leanna or Amanda know!
All we ask is that you read the book: do as much or as little of the rest of it as you want!
"Refugee" by Alan Gratz
"JOSEF is a Jewish boy living in 1930s Nazi Germany. With the threat of concentration camps looming, he and his family board a ship bound for the other side of the world . . .
ISABEL is a Cuban girl in 1994. With riots and unrest plaguing her country, she and her family set out on a raft, hoping to find safety in America . . .
MAHMOUD is a Syrian boy in 2015. With his homeland torn apart by violence and destruction, he and his family begin a long trek toward Europe . . .
All three kids go on harrowing journeys in search of refuge. All will face unimaginable dangers — from drownings to bombings to betrayals. But there is always the hope of tomorrow. And although Josef, Isabel, and Mahmoud are separated by continents and decades, shocking connections will tie their stories together in the end."
*Here are the following pages that you will receive with your kit!*
More about the author, refugees, and the history of some of the places in the book:
Alan Gratz’s website: https://www.alangratz.com/
Scribble map of all the locations visited in the book:
Encyclopedia Britannica’s pages on the history of Aleppo, Havana, and the St. Louis:
The United Nations Refugee Agency’s site: https://www.unhcr.org/
Time magazine’s article about a real-life Syrian refugee family:
The BBC’s interactive site on choosing an escape route from Syria:
Oxfam International’s piece on life in the largest Syrian refugee camp:
Included as well: A Refugee cover art activity, a character design activity, a what would you? activity, a map tracking activity, and a figure showing displacement in 2015.
We hope you enjoy these activities and cannot wait to hear what you thought of the book! We also hope you enjoyed the extra links. Remember, you can comment here on this website, email us at swantonpl@gmail.com, or come in and turn in a physical copy!