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Crooked Teeth: A Queer Syrian Refugee Memoir
A queer Syrian refugee reckons with a life spent out of place.
“Writing this memoir is a betrayal.” So begins this electrifying personal account from Danny Ramadan, a celebrated novelist who has long enjoyed the shield his fiction provides. Now, to tell the story of his life, he must revisit dark corners of his past he’d rather forget and unearth memories of a city he can no longer return to.
Starting with his family’s humble beginnings in Damascus, he takes readers on an epic, border-crossing journey: to the city’s underground network of queer safe homes; to a clandestine party at a secluded villa in Cairo; through Arab Spring uprisings across the Middle East, a reckless hoax that threatens the safety of Syria’s LGBTQ+ community, and a traumatic six-week imprisonment; to beaches and sunsets with friends in Beirut; to an arrival in Vancouver that’s not as smooth as it promised to be; and ultimately to a life of hard-won comfort and love.
What emerges is a powerful refutation of the oversimplified refugee narrative—a book that holds space for joy alongside sorrow, for nuance and complicated ambivalences. Written with fearless intimacy, Crooked Teeth is a singular achievement in which a master storyteller learns that his greatest story is his own.
“Writing this memoir is a betrayal.” So begins this electrifying personal account from Danny Ramadan, a celebrated novelist who has long enjoyed the shield his fiction provides. Now, to tell the story of his life, he must revisit dark corners of his past he’d rather forget and unearth memories of a city he can no longer return to.
Starting with his family’s humble beginnings in Damascus, he takes readers on an epic, border-crossing journey: to the city’s underground network of queer safe homes; to a clandestine party at a secluded villa in Cairo; through Arab Spring uprisings across the Middle East, a reckless hoax that threatens the safety of Syria’s LGBTQ+ community, and a traumatic six-week imprisonment; to beaches and sunsets with friends in Beirut; to an arrival in Vancouver that’s not as smooth as it promised to be; and ultimately to a life of hard-won comfort and love.
What emerges is a powerful refutation of the oversimplified refugee narrative—a book that holds space for joy alongside sorrow, for nuance and complicated ambivalences. Written with fearless intimacy, Crooked Teeth is a singular achievement in which a master storyteller learns that his greatest story is his own.
304 pages, Paperback
First published May 28, 2024
24 people are currently reading
1167 people want to read
About the author
Danny Ramadan
17 books260 followersDanny Ramadan (He/Him) is a Syrian-Canadian author, public speaker and adovate for LGBTQ+ refugees. His debut novel, The Clothesline Swing, was shortlisted for the Lambda Literary Award, longlisted for Canada Reads, and named a Best Book of the Year by the Globe and Mail and Toronto Star.
His children book, Salma the Syrian Chef, won the Nautilus Book Award, The Middle East Book Award, and named a Best Book by both Kirkus and School Library Journal.
Ramadan’s forthcoming novel, The Foghorn Echoes (2022), and his memoir, Crooked Teeth (2024), to be released by Penguin Random House.
Through his fundraising efforts, Ramadan raised over $250,000 for Syrian LGBTQ+ identifying refugees.
He has an MFA in Creative Writing from UBC and currently lives in Vancouver with his husband.
His children book, Salma the Syrian Chef, won the Nautilus Book Award, The Middle East Book Award, and named a Best Book by both Kirkus and School Library Journal.
Ramadan’s forthcoming novel, The Foghorn Echoes (2022), and his memoir, Crooked Teeth (2024), to be released by Penguin Random House.
Through his fundraising efforts, Ramadan raised over $250,000 for Syrian LGBTQ+ identifying refugees.
He has an MFA in Creative Writing from UBC and currently lives in Vancouver with his husband.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 91 reviews
June 27, 2024
I was in awe of this brutally honest and open memoir about best-selling and award-winning queer Syrian Canadian, Danny Ramadan's new memoir!
I especially loved how they were utterly transparent about struggling with sharing parts of their past they weren't comfortable with recounting gratuitously because it would bring them too much pain.
This was amazing on audio narrated by the author himself and a MUST READ, especially during pride month! I cannot recommend this book enough!!
I especially loved how they were utterly transparent about struggling with sharing parts of their past they weren't comfortable with recounting gratuitously because it would bring them too much pain.
This was amazing on audio narrated by the author himself and a MUST READ, especially during pride month! I cannot recommend this book enough!!
June 5, 2024
This was soooooo incredible. One of the best memoirs I’ve read in a long time.
May 18, 2024
I really enjoyed the novel The Foghorn Echoes so I was really eager to read CROOKED TEETH: A Queer Syrian Refugee Memoir by Danny Ramadan and I loved this memoir! It’s one of my fave memoirs now. Ramadan shares his experiences growing up in Syria and finding Queer community. From living in Beirut and ultimately moving to Vancouver his journey had intense moments of violence and uncertainty and joys of friendships and intimacies. Ramadan’s talent as a writer shines as he tells his story on his own terms. This book took me through many emotions. I was reading it during my lunch break at work and when I read the part about his imprisonment I had to stop. That part was so raw and emotional and powerful. At the end of the book I was just casually bawling my eyes out. What a memoir!!! I loved the way he would talk directly to the reader and the way the fine craft of his writing puts me as the reader in his trusting words full of sincerity. I took this book to Davie Street where he mentions going to the Fountainhead Pub and seeing the opera singer at this intersection. I had the pleasure of attending last year’s Vancouver Writers Fest Incite event featuring Ramadan and hopefully I can see him again soon.
Thank you to the publicist and publisher for my advance review copy!
Thank you to the publicist and publisher for my advance review copy!
December 29, 2024
I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time
August 2, 2025
4.8 ⭐️ ARC received through The Ubyssey, published review coming soon 😗
overall a stunning book and fascinating to see how the skill from fiction writing presents in a memoir space
my Ubyssey piece is largely praise so here is my one recurring critique: wish there were a bit more points of concrete resolution or grounding in the ‘story’—notable non linear chronological approach that brushes over some points i found myself wanting for (sure he learned a lot from him but did he find issue with the 40yo man pursuing a teenager?) did he keep in contact with his found family consistently while he was in egypt, or was it more touch and go? we don’t hear about his ‘Mother’ until the last chapter which I was grateful for but for someone who talks sm about what people meant to him and how he was who he was because of these people the ease in which they sometimes slipped into the background felt at times like they weren’t holding as much weight —not casting any judgement that this was the reality i think it’s just a bit how it read!
edited to add: full review can be found https://ubyssey.ca/culture/crooked-te...
overall a stunning book and fascinating to see how the skill from fiction writing presents in a memoir space
my Ubyssey piece is largely praise so here is my one recurring critique: wish there were a bit more points of concrete resolution or grounding in the ‘story’—notable non linear chronological approach that brushes over some points i found myself wanting for (sure he learned a lot from him but did he find issue with the 40yo man pursuing a teenager?) did he keep in contact with his found family consistently while he was in egypt, or was it more touch and go? we don’t hear about his ‘Mother’ until the last chapter which I was grateful for but for someone who talks sm about what people meant to him and how he was who he was because of these people the ease in which they sometimes slipped into the background felt at times like they weren’t holding as much weight —not casting any judgement that this was the reality i think it’s just a bit how it read!
edited to add: full review can be found https://ubyssey.ca/culture/crooked-te...
June 13, 2024
Danny Ramadan starts and ends his memoir asking his reader to receive and hold his words with care, since he's getting personal in ways that are difficult for him. That rawness and vulnerability really came through, not only in the way he shares painful memories, but in the way he discusses his joy, criticisms, disappointment, love, and more. This was just so beautiful. I loved how often Danny broke the fourth wall in explaining why he's choosing to withhold information in some parts, why he chose to focus on different elements in others, and how difficult the process of writing this was. This really moved me!
January 4, 2025
Gripping, funny, immersive, touching. Thanks to the author for writing it.
July 19, 2024
In the opening pages of “Crooked Teeth”, Ramadan speaks directly to his readers.
“Where will you weigh in on the balance between empathy and sympathy? Will you tear up when I tell you about my lows? Will you find me cocky when I celebrate my highs? Did you pick up this memoir with an expectation based on your preconceived notion of what a refugee is, what a gay man is, what a Syrian man is? Are you willing to let go of these notions at the turn of this page and trust me in the telling of my own story. Are you willing to let go of the simple narrative of here is “good” and there is “bad” when it comes to refugees arriving in Canada? Will you trust me, as I am about to trust you? Typing every word on these pages is my own act of trusting you, and trusting you with my truth goes against every defence mechanism I have acquired throughout my life.”
Ramadan goes on to describe a few of his experiences as a new Canadian that explain why it’s difficult for him to trust. Some similar themes as in Y-Dang Troeung’s memoir, Landbridge, like the complicated transition of coming from somewhere else, the vulnerability of being a refugee, and the expectation of ongoing gratitude.
From here, Ramadan takes his readers back to his childhood in Damascus, Syria, his young adulthood in Cairo, Egypt and eventually to Vancouver, Canada. Everywhere, Danny finds and creates family, community and queer safe places. His personality shines through in his writing. From time to time, he effectively breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to readers.
Thank you, Danny, for taking that leap of faith and trusting readers. Yours is a story I’m grateful to have read, learned from and will never forget. Be well.
“Where will you weigh in on the balance between empathy and sympathy? Will you tear up when I tell you about my lows? Will you find me cocky when I celebrate my highs? Did you pick up this memoir with an expectation based on your preconceived notion of what a refugee is, what a gay man is, what a Syrian man is? Are you willing to let go of these notions at the turn of this page and trust me in the telling of my own story. Are you willing to let go of the simple narrative of here is “good” and there is “bad” when it comes to refugees arriving in Canada? Will you trust me, as I am about to trust you? Typing every word on these pages is my own act of trusting you, and trusting you with my truth goes against every defence mechanism I have acquired throughout my life.”
Ramadan goes on to describe a few of his experiences as a new Canadian that explain why it’s difficult for him to trust. Some similar themes as in Y-Dang Troeung’s memoir, Landbridge, like the complicated transition of coming from somewhere else, the vulnerability of being a refugee, and the expectation of ongoing gratitude.
From here, Ramadan takes his readers back to his childhood in Damascus, Syria, his young adulthood in Cairo, Egypt and eventually to Vancouver, Canada. Everywhere, Danny finds and creates family, community and queer safe places. His personality shines through in his writing. From time to time, he effectively breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to readers.
Thank you, Danny, for taking that leap of faith and trusting readers. Yours is a story I’m grateful to have read, learned from and will never forget. Be well.
March 27, 2024
I am sobbing.
And hopefully not like a white woman on a plane.
While there was certainly trauma in this story, what I'm walking away with is the joy that radiated throughout. The joy of found families and created community. The joy of resilience. The joy of celebrating home. The joy of being loved.
I also really appreciated the challenge to the reader at the start. The importance of not dividing the world into purely good and bad, of understanding that both trauma and happiness can be found and experienced in the same places, and of acknowledging that changing your geography doesn't magically make everything better.
In both the story itself and the art of the story-telling, this worked its way into my soul and will stay with me for a long time.
And hopefully not like a white woman on a plane.
While there was certainly trauma in this story, what I'm walking away with is the joy that radiated throughout. The joy of found families and created community. The joy of resilience. The joy of celebrating home. The joy of being loved.
I also really appreciated the challenge to the reader at the start. The importance of not dividing the world into purely good and bad, of understanding that both trauma and happiness can be found and experienced in the same places, and of acknowledging that changing your geography doesn't magically make everything better.
In both the story itself and the art of the story-telling, this worked its way into my soul and will stay with me for a long time.
June 25, 2024
“Happiness, I have learned, fades. It's a chemical reaction that floods your brain with an instant gratification. Serotonin rarely lingers. Joy, on the other hand, is an immortal feeling.”
really really special, not bc of it's depiction of a resilient queer experience in the modern middle east (persecution, political upheaval, a whole lot of trauma), but bc of the queer joy that Danny finds despite all of the hardships in each chapter of his life
🥹
really really special, not bc of it's depiction of a resilient queer experience in the modern middle east (persecution, political upheaval, a whole lot of trauma), but bc of the queer joy that Danny finds despite all of the hardships in each chapter of his life
🥹
January 13, 2025
A must read for white people 🫶
December 1, 2025
I listened to the audio book of this memoir. I have met Danny a couple of times and most recently he read from this memoir and I knew I needed to read it. I always appreciate a memoir that is read by the author. It just offers more of a connection.
I really loved this book. Learning about what it was like growing up in Syria was so interesting. Also, being there for the dawn of Arab Spring. Moving to Canada and finding your way. Gary. And finally successful literary career. Quite the story! I highly recommend reading it.
I really loved this book. Learning about what it was like growing up in Syria was so interesting. Also, being there for the dawn of Arab Spring. Moving to Canada and finding your way. Gary. And finally successful literary career. Quite the story! I highly recommend reading it.
November 18, 2025
One of the best books I’ve ever had the honour of reading – in all the ways.
And it was an honour to listen to Danny’s story. At the very beginning, Danny asks us, the reader, to share in the sacred trust between a storyteller and the audience. To set aside prejudice, and bias, and preconceptions, and just listen. With your whole heart.
It feels like a massive understatement to say that Danny’s journey from Syria, to Egypt, to Lebanon, to Canada, is one filled with challenges and triumphs. But I want to be careful. I don’t want to reduce his extraordinary life to salacious details that I heard from the comfort of my Western, white perspective.
I’m trying to sum up the experience of reading this book, and it feels like an impossible task to honour such a story with words that feel trite and obvious. I guess the best thing to say is that I learned so much. Danny invited me to listen, really listen, and I did.
I learned about life in Syria. I heard about Danny’s specific childhood expectations, family dynamic, and broader, cultural ones of the country. I had my assumptions challenged. I had my heart and mind opened. I learned about the Arab Spring from someone who actually lived it, who was there as a young, queer, Arab person. I learned about beautiful, underground queer culture in parts of the world where it isn’t safe to be out in the open with it. I learned about being a refugee, and the strange combination of hope and hopelessness that comes with such a transitory state of being. I learned about starting a new life in a new place, about trauma, about finding your identity. I learned about the strength, over and over and over again, of kindness and love – these things that transcend place, race, and culture.
Danny has lived a lot of life – and he narrates his own incredibly story beautifully. The writing is sublime. I feel as if I’ve sat in the shady courtyards of houses in Damascus, as if I’ve spent nights dancing at parties with pounding bass in Beirut, as if I’ve walked the sun-beaten streets of Cairo.
There is trauma in Danny’s life, that he is gracious enough to share with us. It’s not easy to listen to, especially with such a skilled author painting such clear pictures, but again, I listened, and sat with Danny through these moments that shaped the course of his life.
There is so much to this book, this writing, this story. So much beauty, and strangeness, and joy and sadness, in the way that only every person’s life contains.
This one will stay with me for a very long time. Thank you, Danny, for trusting a world of readers with your gorgeous book.
And it was an honour to listen to Danny’s story. At the very beginning, Danny asks us, the reader, to share in the sacred trust between a storyteller and the audience. To set aside prejudice, and bias, and preconceptions, and just listen. With your whole heart.
It feels like a massive understatement to say that Danny’s journey from Syria, to Egypt, to Lebanon, to Canada, is one filled with challenges and triumphs. But I want to be careful. I don’t want to reduce his extraordinary life to salacious details that I heard from the comfort of my Western, white perspective.
I’m trying to sum up the experience of reading this book, and it feels like an impossible task to honour such a story with words that feel trite and obvious. I guess the best thing to say is that I learned so much. Danny invited me to listen, really listen, and I did.
I learned about life in Syria. I heard about Danny’s specific childhood expectations, family dynamic, and broader, cultural ones of the country. I had my assumptions challenged. I had my heart and mind opened. I learned about the Arab Spring from someone who actually lived it, who was there as a young, queer, Arab person. I learned about beautiful, underground queer culture in parts of the world where it isn’t safe to be out in the open with it. I learned about being a refugee, and the strange combination of hope and hopelessness that comes with such a transitory state of being. I learned about starting a new life in a new place, about trauma, about finding your identity. I learned about the strength, over and over and over again, of kindness and love – these things that transcend place, race, and culture.
Danny has lived a lot of life – and he narrates his own incredibly story beautifully. The writing is sublime. I feel as if I’ve sat in the shady courtyards of houses in Damascus, as if I’ve spent nights dancing at parties with pounding bass in Beirut, as if I’ve walked the sun-beaten streets of Cairo.
There is trauma in Danny’s life, that he is gracious enough to share with us. It’s not easy to listen to, especially with such a skilled author painting such clear pictures, but again, I listened, and sat with Danny through these moments that shaped the course of his life.
There is so much to this book, this writing, this story. So much beauty, and strangeness, and joy and sadness, in the way that only every person’s life contains.
This one will stay with me for a very long time. Thank you, Danny, for trusting a world of readers with your gorgeous book.
August 7, 2025
There are imaginary lines on the map showing where these streets used to be, like veins on a corpse.
I trace the memories on my body. My aches are my keys.
for me this wasn't a book. it was everything, it was history, it was evidence that yes, people like me exist and they've always existed even if their voices weren't heard, couldn't be heard.
besides guardians of equality movement, and handful of authors & artists, there's very little that can be found about queer syrians. it is scarce to ever find anything about queer syrians. i know they exist. i memorize the names i already know, i write them down, i try to remember that yes they've existed. they've felt this. they exist. i exist. but i feel distanced from it; i've always felt distanced from my own culture and that distance only grows more when it's about my lgbtqia identity. in some way, like many teenage queers today, i have a specific western idea of being queer, of what queerness is. i dress queer, try to talk queer, want to be queer enough to be clocked as queer, to fit into the narrative. which only makes me feel isolated from not only both western & poc experiences but the queer community as a whole. this distance breaks while reading this book.
the language, raw, nonlinear at times, only made me feel more drawn to the book. it felt like a spiral. and i got to read about the queer experiences of someone like me. someone who mentions homemade food i recognize, someone who speaks my language and mentions sayings and descriptions of things that feel so vivid to me because i recognize it. reading queer experiences and stories is comforting, but nothing compares to reading the experience of someone from the same heritage. especially when you're a young queer who doesn't know how to bridge the gap between identities. questions, answers, musings - some things mentioned only for one lines, such as hearing the word POC for the first time, trying to find the meaning of what being syrian even means and looking at the past ancient history, the bit about coming out and how it doesn't change your identity. i see myself, there.
i'm honestly having a migraine after reading the whole book in one night and one evening and processing a lot of things it made me think about is quite hard. but it made me realize a lot of things. mostly that i don't want to be a convenient queer anymore.
maybe tomorrow I'll reach a breakthrough of researching old and ancient syrian myths, maybe I'll pick out a new preferred name from something related to my heritage, maybe I'll even grow up and write stories and songs about my experiences. but for now i can't express how infinitely happy and grateful i am for writers like zeyn joukhadar & danny ramadan whose books have found me and changed me.
I trace the memories on my body. My aches are my keys.
for me this wasn't a book. it was everything, it was history, it was evidence that yes, people like me exist and they've always existed even if their voices weren't heard, couldn't be heard.
besides guardians of equality movement, and handful of authors & artists, there's very little that can be found about queer syrians. it is scarce to ever find anything about queer syrians. i know they exist. i memorize the names i already know, i write them down, i try to remember that yes they've existed. they've felt this. they exist. i exist. but i feel distanced from it; i've always felt distanced from my own culture and that distance only grows more when it's about my lgbtqia identity. in some way, like many teenage queers today, i have a specific western idea of being queer, of what queerness is. i dress queer, try to talk queer, want to be queer enough to be clocked as queer, to fit into the narrative. which only makes me feel isolated from not only both western & poc experiences but the queer community as a whole. this distance breaks while reading this book.
the language, raw, nonlinear at times, only made me feel more drawn to the book. it felt like a spiral. and i got to read about the queer experiences of someone like me. someone who mentions homemade food i recognize, someone who speaks my language and mentions sayings and descriptions of things that feel so vivid to me because i recognize it. reading queer experiences and stories is comforting, but nothing compares to reading the experience of someone from the same heritage. especially when you're a young queer who doesn't know how to bridge the gap between identities. questions, answers, musings - some things mentioned only for one lines, such as hearing the word POC for the first time, trying to find the meaning of what being syrian even means and looking at the past ancient history, the bit about coming out and how it doesn't change your identity. i see myself, there.
i'm honestly having a migraine after reading the whole book in one night and one evening and processing a lot of things it made me think about is quite hard. but it made me realize a lot of things. mostly that i don't want to be a convenient queer anymore.
maybe tomorrow I'll reach a breakthrough of researching old and ancient syrian myths, maybe I'll pick out a new preferred name from something related to my heritage, maybe I'll even grow up and write stories and songs about my experiences. but for now i can't express how infinitely happy and grateful i am for writers like zeyn joukhadar & danny ramadan whose books have found me and changed me.
May 16, 2024
Received from NetGalley, thanks!
This was a phenomenal read. I am yet again blown away by Danny Ramadan's writing.
I love how this book starts, with Ramadan asking for the reader's trust; asking for us to trust that what he's telling us is his story, because that is really what a memoir is all about. I also loved that the intro/first chapter (I think I got a slightly bad ARC and chapters weren't really showing up) is extremely critical of white saviourism and racism within the literary world (and in the world in general).
The memoir follows Ramadan from his childhood in Damascus, with a mentally ill mother and an absent father, his move to Egypt for work, the Arab Spring and how that impacted on him, as a queer man on a temporary visa in Egypt. Then we are back in Damascus, finding the places that it is safe to be himself, until he is arrested by the Syrian police, which prompts his flee to Lebanon, and then to Canada.
What I really appreciated about this memoir is that Ramadan gives us exactly as much of himself as he can. I'm not sure that I've ever read a memoir that clearly lays out the author's boundaries like that; this is as much as I'm telling you and I'm not telling you more. I think there is this expectation of both authors and readers, when it comes to a memoir, that you're going to be giving/getting absolutely every single detail of that life. But really, what would reading about these incredibly traumatic events add to the story? It would just be trauma porn, and no one should be expected to give that of themselves if they don't feel safe doing so.
I also enjoyed that Ramadan broke the fourth wall to speak directly to the reader, to explain his choices at certain parts of the book; at the beginning when he's talking about trust, when he's describing his time in prison, when he first arrives in Canada. I appreciated his honesty and criticism of the process of coming to Canada; how sponsors are not adequately prepared, nor are the refugees, in terms of what to expect and how difficult it can be. I have read a couple of other memoirs by Syrian refugees, and they both ended in a very "I'm in Canada now and my life is 1000x better!" way, which I'm sure is accurate for some, but certainly not all, refugees.
I absolutely devoured this memoir and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to go back and read Ramadan's other books now (even the kids ones!).
This was a phenomenal read. I am yet again blown away by Danny Ramadan's writing.
I love how this book starts, with Ramadan asking for the reader's trust; asking for us to trust that what he's telling us is his story, because that is really what a memoir is all about. I also loved that the intro/first chapter (I think I got a slightly bad ARC and chapters weren't really showing up) is extremely critical of white saviourism and racism within the literary world (and in the world in general).
The memoir follows Ramadan from his childhood in Damascus, with a mentally ill mother and an absent father, his move to Egypt for work, the Arab Spring and how that impacted on him, as a queer man on a temporary visa in Egypt. Then we are back in Damascus, finding the places that it is safe to be himself, until he is arrested by the Syrian police, which prompts his flee to Lebanon, and then to Canada.
What I really appreciated about this memoir is that Ramadan gives us exactly as much of himself as he can. I'm not sure that I've ever read a memoir that clearly lays out the author's boundaries like that; this is as much as I'm telling you and I'm not telling you more. I think there is this expectation of both authors and readers, when it comes to a memoir, that you're going to be giving/getting absolutely every single detail of that life. But really, what would reading about these incredibly traumatic events add to the story? It would just be trauma porn, and no one should be expected to give that of themselves if they don't feel safe doing so.
I also enjoyed that Ramadan broke the fourth wall to speak directly to the reader, to explain his choices at certain parts of the book; at the beginning when he's talking about trust, when he's describing his time in prison, when he first arrives in Canada. I appreciated his honesty and criticism of the process of coming to Canada; how sponsors are not adequately prepared, nor are the refugees, in terms of what to expect and how difficult it can be. I have read a couple of other memoirs by Syrian refugees, and they both ended in a very "I'm in Canada now and my life is 1000x better!" way, which I'm sure is accurate for some, but certainly not all, refugees.
I absolutely devoured this memoir and I highly recommend it. I can't wait to go back and read Ramadan's other books now (even the kids ones!).
August 9, 2025
This was excellent! I really liked the complications and nuance that Ramadan added into his memoir and the almost meta approach he used at parts to pull away and examine the memoir process and the telling of his life.
It was touching, interesting, and well read by the author and also I found out my sister knows (of) Danny! Woo! Celeb connections! They’ve been in similar rooms!
A good look at the concept of refugee and how we often view it as Canadians and what it really means to be displaced and to find belonging. Grateful for this one.
It was touching, interesting, and well read by the author and also I found out my sister knows (of) Danny! Woo! Celeb connections! They’ve been in similar rooms!
A good look at the concept of refugee and how we often view it as Canadians and what it really means to be displaced and to find belonging. Grateful for this one.
January 23, 2025
An outstanding memoir, skillfully crafted and beautifully written. He creates an intimacy of tone with the reader, addressing us directly, reminding us of the trust that must exist between us to make this memoir work, reminding us of our responsibility as readers. By the end, I was in tears. I don't remember the last time a book made me do that.
Read
March 11, 2025the depictions of queer collectivity and home-making were breathtaking! need to visit cairo after reading this istg
April 23, 2025
Unflinchingly honest and raw. Danny is a fantastic narrator and tells his story with care and brilliance.
June 16, 2024
Really really good. One of the best memoirs I've read.
February 21, 2025
I feel weird rating memoirs but this was beautifully written and the audiobook was enjoyable to listen to! I appreciated Danny’s openness in sharing his story.
May 16, 2025
6 stars
November 20, 2024
I’m often hesitant to rate memoirs, because who am I to judge another persons lived experience?
But I hope this is a candidate for CBC’s Canada Reads. It’s excellent, and timely.
But I hope this is a candidate for CBC’s Canada Reads. It’s excellent, and timely.
August 11, 2025
As frustrating as he is, I understand that he is deserving of the trust he requested.
3.92/5
Danny, you truly are one of the worst and most obnoxious survivors that I would die to protect. Thank you for bearing your scars, sharing your memories with me. Just promise me that, from now on, you will ask for trust in yourself instead of from your reader.
3.92/5
Danny, you truly are one of the worst and most obnoxious survivors that I would die to protect. Thank you for bearing your scars, sharing your memories with me. Just promise me that, from now on, you will ask for trust in yourself instead of from your reader.
May 1, 2025
i usually preface reviews of memoirs by saying that i feel weird reviewing and rating them, but this one.... y'all... this one.... i truly think it might be the best memoir i've read in my life??? the way that the author writes just blew my mind. this is my favourite paragraph, and it's literally introduced within the first few pages of the book:
"...I believe that the refugee voice deserves respect. Research needs to be done—deep dives into the geopolitical, economic, religious, and personal aspects of the refugee experience—along with a willingness to question the place this work would occupy.
And even despite thorough research and intense dedication, there are details that an outsider to a particular culture is bound to get wrong. In English, for example, when something makes you happy, you say that it warms your heart. In Upper Arabic, the language we write novels and read the news in, you say that it ices your chest. Think about it. English is a language born in a cold climate, where warmth brings memories of joyful summer days. Arabic is a language born in the middle of a desert, where a chill is what brings such bliss.
I would hope that authors who write about experiences outside their own are asking themselves whose seat at the table they're taking away. When they take up the space, it affects the way we as marginalized artists are viewed, read, interviewed, marketed, and valued."
honestly, the moment i read this part, i knew this was gonna be a GOOD read.
"...I believe that the refugee voice deserves respect. Research needs to be done—deep dives into the geopolitical, economic, religious, and personal aspects of the refugee experience—along with a willingness to question the place this work would occupy.
And even despite thorough research and intense dedication, there are details that an outsider to a particular culture is bound to get wrong. In English, for example, when something makes you happy, you say that it warms your heart. In Upper Arabic, the language we write novels and read the news in, you say that it ices your chest. Think about it. English is a language born in a cold climate, where warmth brings memories of joyful summer days. Arabic is a language born in the middle of a desert, where a chill is what brings such bliss.
I would hope that authors who write about experiences outside their own are asking themselves whose seat at the table they're taking away. When they take up the space, it affects the way we as marginalized artists are viewed, read, interviewed, marketed, and valued."
honestly, the moment i read this part, i knew this was gonna be a GOOD read.
July 29, 2025
An excellent and moving story. It's tough to hear how much injustice there is in the world, but it is important to not forget. *audiobook
July 20, 2025
CW: graphic: homophobia, emotional abuse, violence, imprisonment; moderate: injury, illness, police brutality, abusive relationship
It was clear from the beginning Danny Ramadan is a very talented storyteller, and he did such an incredible job with the many stories within this one. I love memoirs but this was so unique and much more than just a retelling of events.
Also, I would recommend listening to the audiobook for at least a bit of the first half because it is read by the author. I also realized I was misunderstanding the tone for some of the dialogue!
It was clear from the beginning Danny Ramadan is a very talented storyteller, and he did such an incredible job with the many stories within this one. I love memoirs but this was so unique and much more than just a retelling of events.
Also, I would recommend listening to the audiobook for at least a bit of the first half because it is read by the author. I also realized I was misunderstanding the tone for some of the dialogue!
June 25, 2025
Incredibly moving, authentic, real. Danny Ramadan is easily one of my favourite writers and has such heart while not shying away from the complexity of the memoir format, and the colonialism and white savourism that can be involved in consuming refugee narratives. Big big recommend.
September 26, 2024
Many memoirs are simply famous people looking to make a buck or prolong their relevance, but this was a refreshing and deeply original memoir. I have met Danny Ramadan and am impressed with him as an activist and as a writer but this memoir was something really special. I appreciated his reluctance in writing it and his honesty about that reluctance. As one of the white Canadians he hesitated to trust with his story, I am deeply grateful he persisted in writing anyway. He presents the joys and the challenges of the circumstances that brought him to life as a refugee. I appreciated the honesty in reflecting on his experience with Canada’s private sponsorship program for refugees. The world needs more brave men like Danny Ramadan.
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