Call Me American (Adapted for Young Adults)
The Extraordinary True Story of a Young Somali Immigrant
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
Adapted from the adult memoir, this gripping and acclaimed story follows one boy's journey into young adulthood, against the backdrop of civil war and his ultimate immigration to America, in search of a better life.
In Somalia, Abdi Nor Iftin grew up amidst a blend of cultures. His mother entertained him with vivid folktales and bold stories about her rural, nomadic upbrinding. As he grew older, he spent his days following his father, a basketball player, through the bustling street of the capital city of Mogadishu.
But when the threat of civil war reached Abdi's doorstep, his family was forced to flee to safety. Through the turbulent years of war, young Abdi found solace in popular American music and films. Nicknamed Abdi the American, he developed a proficiency for English that connected him--and his story--with news outlets and radio shows, and eventually gave him a shot at winning the annual U.S. visa lottery.
Abdi shares every part of his journey, and his courageous account reminds readers that everyone deserves the chance to build a brighter future for themselves.
Four Starred Reviews!
" . . . devastating, inspiring, and ultimately hopeful." —SLJ, Starred Review
"An absolutely stunning survival story . . ." —Booklist, Starred Review
". . .facilitates a deeper understanding of immigration today." —Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
" . . . genuinely suspenseful." —Bulletin, Starred Review
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
War-torn Somalia is the unlikely incubator for an immigrant success story in this wrenching yet hopeful autobiography. Iftin was five years old in 1991 when a decadeslong civil war engulfed the Somali capital of Mogadishu; his family witnessed massacres by militias, survived death marches, and endured years of starvation. His one escape from grim reality was a movie theater where he learned English watching American action movies, and his enthusiasm for the wealth, freedom, and rough justice depicted in them earned him the nickname "Abdi American." That spelled trouble, however, when the rise of Islamic extremism brought harsh religious strictures he was flogged for going to the beach with a girl and attacks on anyone associated with America. A chance 2009 encounter with an American reporter got him a gig doing radio dispatches for NPR, and more Islamist threats; after his house was bombed, he fled to the enclave for persecuted Somalis in Kenya, and finally, after navigating the labyrinth of U.S. immigration rules, moved to rural Maine, where he now works as a translator. Written in limpid prose, Iftin's extraordinary saga is not just a journey of self-advancement but a quest to break free from ethnic and sectarian hatreds.
