Memoir and finding oneself that pulls in additional stories of refugees trials she uncovers. Guts the idea of "more deserving" migrants, especially that destitution is required for worthiness, and ultimately we should assume everyone we meet is a richly complex human to treat with dignity.
This is a truly amazing book about the experience and the feeling of being a refugee. Nayeri is incredibly honest and direct. She is also unrelenting in demanding people in the West to recognize their routine dehumanization of the refugees.
Dina Nayeri does an amazing job describing her experience as a refugee - so much so that I could feel her isolation and displacement. I wondered if we were in Italy at the same time; me as a young college student getting to explore the world for the first time, while Dina was stuck in a holding pattern in a country that did not want to claim her. Did I drive by the Hotel Barba on my many trips outside the city? I'll never know, but I desperately wanted to connect with her. I don't think I've read a book that evoked this level of empathy in me. I highly recommend it.
