The Waiting Place

By Dina Nayeri, Anna Bosch Miralpeix (Illustrator)

Ten young refugees navigate life in a Greek camp, battling to retain identity and hope.

3.9/5 Goodreads · 132 ratings

64 pages· 2,801 words· Est. 19 min read

$18.99Save 5%

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Bookroo's summary

In a Greek refugee camp, ten young lives from Iran and Afghanistan unfold against a backdrop of displacement. From ages five to seventeen, these children confront a world that threatens their identity and dreams. Living in makeshift homes, they each find unique ways to survive and imagine a future. As their stories intertwine, the harsh realities of their existence are illuminated through intimate photographs and poignant reflections. This narrative challenges perceptions of home and safety, urging a reevaluation of what we teach about belonging in a world of upheaval.

From the publisher

An unflinching look at ten young lives suspended outside of time–and bravely proceeding anyway–inside the Katsikas refugee camp in Greece. Every war, famine, and flood spits out survivors. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cites an unprecedented 79.5 million forcibly displaced people on the planet today. In 2018, Dina Nayeri–a former refugee herself and the daughter of a refugee–invited documentary photographer Anna Bosch Miralpeix to accompany her to Katsikas, a refugee camp outside Ioannina, Greece, to record the hopes and struggles of ten young Farsi-speaking refugees from Iran and Afghanistan. “I wanted to play with them, to enter their imagined worlds, to see the landscape inside their minds,” she says. Ranging in age from five to seventeen, the children live in partitioned shipping-crate homes crowded on a field below a mountain. Battling a dreary monster that wants to rob them of their purpose, dignity, and identity, each survives in his or her own special way. The Waiting Place is an unflinching look at ten young lives suspended outside of time–and bravely proceeding anyway. Each lyrical passage leads the reader from one story to the next, revealing the dreams, ambitions, and personalities of each displaced child. The stories are punctuated by intimate photographs, followed by the author’s reflections on life in a refugee camp. Locking the global refugee crisis sharply in focus, The Waiting Place is an urgent call to change what we teach young people about the nature of home and safety.