Somewhere in the Unknown World

by Kao Kalia Yang

Somewhere in the Unknown World is a themed collection of stories of refugees from around the world who have converged on Minneapolis, collected and told by the award-winning author of The Latehomecomer and The Song Poet.

Back in the 1980s, Minnesota's University Avenue was barely clinging to life. Lined with church thrift stores, boarded windows, and prostitutes leaning against streetlights, the sidewalks were thick with bloody, discarded needles. Today, University Avenue is a bustling commercial center, a hub of Halal butchers, Mexican carnicerias, grocery stores selling delicacies to new arrivals from Ethiopia and Bosnia, Iraq and China. A dying strip of America has been revived by the stateless.

As the country's doors are closing and nativism is on the rise, Kao Kalia Yang—herself a refugee from Laos—set out to tell the stories of the refugees to whom University Avenue is now home. Here are people who have summoned the energy and determination to make a new life even as they carry an extraordinary burden of hardship, loss, and emotional damage: Irina, an ex-Soviet, who still hoards magical American fruit—bananas!—under her bed; the Thai brothers of Vinai and their business selling purified water to gullible immigrants; the Kareni boys, who have brought Minnesota to basketball glory.

In Yang's exquisite, poetic, and necessary telling, the voices of refugees from all over the world restore humanity to America's strangers and redeem its long history of welcome.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Book Club, Short Stories, History, Biography Memoir, Essays

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 10, 2020

About the author

Kao Kalia Yang is an award-winning Hmong-American writer. She is a graduate of Carleton College and Columbia University. Yang is the author of the memoirs The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir and The Song Poet. The Latehomecomer is the first Asian American authored and centered book to be added to the roster of the Literature to Life Program and a National Endowment for the Arts Big Read title. The Song Poet has been commissioned as a youth opera by the Minnesota Opera and will premiere in the spring of 2021. Yang is also the author of the children’s books, A Map Into the World, The Shared Room, and The Most Beautiful Thing. She co-edited the ground-breaking collection What God is Honored Here?: Writings on Miscarriage and Infant Loss By and For Indigenous Women and Women of Color. Her newest title is Somewhere in the Unknown World, a collective memoir of refugee experiences. Yang’s literary nonfiction work has been recognized by the National Book Critics Circle Award, the Chautauqua Prize, the PEN USA literary awards, the Dayton’s Literary Peace Prize, and garnered three Minnesota Book awards. Her children’s books have been listed as an American Library Association Notable Book, a Zolotow Honor, a Kirkus Best Book of the Year, a finalist for the Midwest Independent Bookseller’s Award, and winner of a Minnesota Book Award in Children’s Literature. Kao Kalia Yang is a recipient of the International Institute of Minnesota’s Olga Zoltai Award for her community leadership and service to New Americans and the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts’ 2019 Sally Award for Social Impact.

Reviews

[Chrissie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been looking forward to this because I loved the author's two earlier memoirs about her immigrant family of Hmong descent. She came to live in Minnesota, which has in fact the highest number of refugees per capita of any state in the U.S. In this, her latest book, she writes of these refugees, people she has come to know. They spoke and she wrote their stories. Each read through what she had written and confirmed she had drawn their story accurately. What we have here are her words but others’ stories as they were told to her.

The refugees are from all over the world. They have lived through wars and / or discrimination. They come from a wide range of countries, for example Bosnia-Herzegovina, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Iraq, Eritrea, Liberia, Thailand and Somalia. The stories demonstrate how historical events play out in individual lives. The stories told are personal and often heart-wrenching. At the same time, the message that is conveyed by these stories is positive, life-affirming. They illustrate the resilience and strength of human beings and what we are capable of overcoming.

The author has a way with words. She writes lyrically. She writes poignantly making a reader care about those she speaks of. She writes with empathy.

Some life stories are more captivating than others. I do prefer a book that focuses on just one or two individuals rather than many.

Two narrate the audiobook, one male and one female. The author reads the stories told by women. Kurt Kwan reads the stories of men. Splitting the stories up like this is good. However, I much prefer Kurt Kwan’s narration. His voice is strong and clear and forceful. Kao Kalia Yang’s voice is thin and weak. Her words are less distinct and harder to decipher. Even if the story she relates has a positive message, the impression left is depressing. Her voice lacks adequate resonance. If I could rate them separately, I would give Yang’s narration one star and Kwan’s four. Overall, I have given two. Yang writes a very good book, but she should not have done the female narration.

I am glad to have read this book. It is an important book. It shines a light on the plight of refugees in today’s world while at the same time instilling hope for the future.

**************************

*The Song Poet: A Memoir of My Father 5 stars
*The Latehomecomer: A Hmong Family Memoir 5 stars
*Somewhere in the Unknown World: A Collective Refugee Memoir 4 stars

[Ms. B · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dear Kao Kalia Yang,
Thank you for sharing these beautiful and heartbreaking stories of our immigrants and refugees. As your yawm txiv (Hmong for father) said, "Life will teach you the strength of the human heart, not of its weakness or fragility.”
You are a voice for the voiceless. May this book be embraced by many.

[Kate Alvarado · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a collection of chapters in which 15 Minnesotan refugees tell personal stories. Equal parts honestly bitter but solidly hopeful; this book is full of heart. Kao Kalia Yang brings important untold stories to the table, including her own, revealing the strife of many countries you don’t hear about in headlines, as well as the personal suffering of real people from the countries that do flank the headlines. More than that, especially as a Minnesotan, this book has been teaching me about my neighbors and informs the respect and love I owe them.

I listened to the Libby audiobook - which I loved because the writer/editor narrated it herself with authenticity. But I would have loved to see and visualize these stories and names in print so that they would be sealed further in my memory. I would recommend this book to everyone - and I am so glad it was recommended to me!

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting stories of refugees living in Minnesota. Many are Hmong, Karen, Sudanese and Eritrean. Their stories are often harrowing and it’s moving they came to the US to live a better life.

[Jenn Hooke · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a Minnesotan, I feel compelled to give this book 5 stars, particularly because for almost every nationality/ ethnic community who has a story told I can identify a student I have worked with whose family has come from that background (Bosnian, Somali, Serbian, Russian, Bhurmese/Karen, Afghan, Iraqi, Eritrean, Laotian, Hmong, Vietnamese). Framing the stories of refugees, of the insurmountable odds they’ve faced and the new lives they’ve created, will give you immeasurable respect. As a strong supporter of Lutheran Social Services, I also enjoyed the note at the end describing the support networks in Minnesota for refugee families (and the challenges they also face).

[Mindy Greiling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully stories of why refugees came to Minnesota that help me understand exactly why citizenship ceremonies are so emotional. Yang is a wonderful, clear writer!

[Margarita Alvarez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series of stories intrigued me from the start. Each story focuses on a different person’s experience as a refugee. They ran the gamut from Eritrea to Laos to Iraq-all landing in Minnesota. Some stories felt so dramatic I felt like I was reading a “made for TV movie” but in a good way. I appreciated that so many were stories of women, as it feels like refugee stories are told many times from a male point of view. I was also very surprised at how recent the stories were and yet how the conditions they struggled through seemed like they shouldn’t be happening in modern times.
For the most part, the stories ended in an uplifting way. It did highlight the issues that refugees can also face with a transition to a new place from a situation that was highly stressful.
If I had one quibble with the book, it would be that sometimes the writing felt awkward or too flowery. But in the end the point of the stories came across.

[Jane Considine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned about this author recently and added my name to the wait list for her newest book, but then found this audiobook by the same author. I have had some recent experiences seeing first-hand about the life of recent refugees and this book reinforced my thinking about the challenges refugees face: encountering an entirely different culture from what they know, finding food they are familiar with, learning English, finding affordable housing for a large family, navigating the health care system and experiencing modern medicine in a clinic and hospital, etc. In this book the author interviews several people who immigrated to the U.S., all of them settling in Minnesota. Resilient, fearless, hopeful, brave, stubborn, strong, patient ... those are the qualities refugees need to survive before they leave their homeland, and after they arrive in their new home.

[Corinne · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the reasons I’ve loved this author’s work since I read her first novel is culture is a component of her stories. She doesn’t tell her readers about her characters lives. She shares the language, knowing and context with us so we begin to see the world through her character’s ways of seeing. This book is a compilation of the true stories of people with refugee status who the author knew in her own life, captured by a woman who was a refugee herself. She beautifully captures the human experience in this book and her storytelling has depth and beauty.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stop to hear their stories. 💜 When we don’t listen to people’s stories is when it’s easy to disregard them or even despise them. These stories are stories of humanity. They are stories of hope, of pain, of struggle, of joy, of heartbreak.

[Beckie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The connection of the story tellers Kalia reveals at the end of the book wraps this together so nicely. The tales from all parts of the world but all having a MN piece were hard to read, eye-opening, and sad. Many were inspiring. These are the stories that should be told and broadcast so others can understand what war and disruption do to our brothers and sisters across the world. Kalia's narration with her soft voice is something to get used to, then beautiful.

[Joanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Beautiful, vulnerable stories of refugees in Minnesota who give a glimpse of their experiences. Such a gift. Not a fast read because there is so much in each story.

[Barb Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

We hear a lot about refugees in the news and from politicians. This book taught me a lot about the important things to know and remember when you hear that word. She has beautifully shared stories from refugees all over the world and their connection to Minnesota. The stories told and the untold have turned the noun refugee into a process, a policy, a feeling, an entire story, a history, a legacy, a life that is brave, fragile and matters.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful writing. Fascinating stories.

[Merikay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Likely a best of the year for me. Interesting how the stories are from refugees of 15 different countries. Amazing stories of challenges faced by those trying for a better life.

[Ellen Pietsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very moving and beautifully written book. The stories will stay with me for a very long time, especially the story of the 2 sisters at the riverbank. This book helps give perspective to those of us who have been lucky enough to be shielded from the horrors of war and conflict.

[Joel Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a truly incredible collection of stories—all written in the first-person by Kao Kalia Yang. A must read, especially for those of us who call the Twin Cities “home”

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Somewhere in the Unknown World: A Collective Refugee Memoir" by Kao Kalia Yang is the next selection for my S.E.E.D. (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) Book Club. That would be one reason that I chose to read this book. But, more importantly, Hmong-American Kao Kalia Yang is the reason I chose to read this book. As a writer, and as a human being, she is beauty, light, and empathy. This book, again, demonstrates that. Though Yang writes this book for refugees and for her children, it is a gift to us all.

"Somewhere in the Unknown World" consists or a series of refugee memoirs, collected through interviews Yang conducted with her subjects, and then carefully and gently committed to the pages of this book. Yang asked each interviewee to read and authenticate each piece before publication. One of the things that all of these refugees, or children of refugees, have in common is that they eventually came to call Minnesota home. In fact, Minnesota is the home to more refugees including Hmong, Tibetan, Somali, Liberian, Burmese, Eritrean, and Karen refugees than any state in the nation. Yang, herself a Minnesotan, was born in Ban Vinai Refugee Camp in Thailand. Included are the stories of Irene Ruderman Clark (a Jewish refugee from Belarus), Yara Hassan (a Muslim refugee from Syria), Siah Borzie (a refugee from Liberia), Michael Tesfay (a Christian refugee from Eritrea), Fong Lee (a Hmong refugee from Laos), and Tommy Sarr (whose parents are Cambodian refugees, and who himself became a refugee in the United States). As Hawra Alnabi (a refugee from Iraq) tells us, "Judge me, judge us, only after you have heard our stories." (p. 111)

Takeaways:

1. In a time where we watch Ukrainian refugee stories being written each and every day in real time, this book is important. The stories of the refugees told here represent groups whose stories often were not told, even hidden. These stories need to be told and consumed because many don't know these stories. Yang asks at the end of the book, "How do we let people have their voices in a system that is designed against their stories?" By drawing parallels between now and then, perhaps the world can develop empathy for the refugee story - and, more importantly, ACT on this knowledge. The collection begins with this dedication:

"For the refugees from everywhere - men, women, and children whose fates have been held by the interests of nations, whose rights have been contested and denied, whose thirst and hunger go unheeded and unseen."

- LEAVING "HOME" - religious persecution, racial persecution, war, "Life is too valuable to face with fear." (p. 27), class, trauma and its repercussions, family, survival, basic necessities, "...learning to fall to minimize the risk of injury..." (p. 39), partings, love of country, love of others ("In my time with my mother and father, they never talked of love as a feeling between people, a shared affection, attraction, a belief, a bond, a relationship that even death could not sever." - p. 84), loss, death, what it means to be human/humanity, what are the moments in our lives in which everything changes irrevocably? ("Refugees do not know the moment their lives are going to change forever." p. 220), taking life, etc.

- TRANSITIONING TO A NEW "HOME" - the interview process and what to say and not say, separation from family, violence, trauma, family, survival, basic necessities, death, loss, "But the thing about life is this: when we are unsure, the Universe isn't." (p. 90), what it means to be human/humanity, peril, etc.

- SURVIVING IN AND LIVING IN A NEW "HOME" - racial inequities, bullying, fear, finding success, the American social welfare system, adjusting to a new way of life and what is seen as acceptable and unacceptable, finding work that is often low paying and not in accordance with one's training and ability, class, family, survival, basic necessities, reunions, education, redefining self, opportunity or lack thereof, citizenship, what it means to be human/humanity, how America holds up as "The Promised Land," giving life, finding purpose, the different experiences of the young and the old in America, sadness, brokenness, laughter, joy, being seen, being heard, disability, resilience, etc.

2. Though many individuals share their stories here, I could hear Yang's voice woven into each story (the exquisite descriptions, the grace and flow of the language, the longing):

- p. 15 - "The wind and the ocean beckoned as the large gathering stood in uncertain freedom, tethered to shared histories and places far away."

- p. 34 - "In Syria, Father had been the coach of the national judo team, a handsome man with eyes the color of green seas. He was not the tallest man, but he had been among the healthiest."

- p. 96 - "I could feel the piercing heat on my scalp despite the scarf over my head. Sweat trickled down the bridge of my nose. I felt my own foreignness beneath the hot Iraqi sun. I had been away for too long."

- p. 115 - "Kandahar of my heart, of my country, of my blood, and my skin. Kandahar, with her dry sand and her stretches of desert along the edge of the Arghandab River. Kandahar, known throughout Afghanistan for its pomegranates and its grapes, know by others for its marijuana and hashish. Kandahar, the land of my birth, the birthplace of my ancestors."

- p. 184 - "Watching the little boy with the curly hair and the full lips curled close to her mother brought Saymoukda a great joy. Here was what mattered in her life, the two of them, one her day, the other her night; together her mother and her son made her world turn around and around."

3. It was interesting to think about the ways in which these stories were parallel to one another. I asked myself what the similarities in these stories were, the universal lessons to be learned. And then I asked in what way each of these stories were unique.

The consequences of war, the torment of poverty, persecution based on race or religion...all compelling reasons to flee, are found in these stories. Obviously, each of these individuals, and sometimes their families, chose the loss of the place they called "home" over the risks of trying to get to a place where they felt they could have a future, where hope existed. The LOSS of home and everything they knew and loved, and the accompanying grief, is palpable here. Why would someone make this choice, unless they were desperate? The perils of getting to the place that was perceived as "hope" are unimaginable. And the realities of these "hopeful" places at the least are often disappointing and difficult, often much more.

4. I learned more about this place that I call "home," Minnesota. For instance, James Beard Award winning, Hoi Trang's memoir, centering on the history of the University Avenue area in St. Paul and his restaurant, Ngon Bistro, was really interesting and enlightening. And Hawra Alnabi's story leads to Fridley, Minnesota, where my husband was raised.

This is, honestly, an essential read. Essential, in terms of both the telling and the receiving of the gifts contained in each of these stories, which will enable readers to better understand the world in which we live and to work to make this world a better place. As Afghanzada Achekzai asks,

"...the questions that had been bothering me since my arrival: How do I improve my humanity? How does a human being, biological in every way, get documents of their humanity?...What is the difference between you and me? How come you are more human than me, in a position to observe and certify my humanity? After all, did we not have the same blood, the same makeup? The same dreams, even? Why are you more successful in your humanity than I am in mine?" (p. 135-6)

Wisdom is abundant on these pages. Highly recommended!

[evelyn]

For each person in this book, Kao Kalia Yang took a different approach to telling their story. She writes beautifully. I appreciated that she sought to go beyond the typical script of the refugee experience we hear in the United States and tell the stories that felt true to her subjects.

Appreciated reading this as a Minnesotan. Not only is it important to hear the stories of those within my community but it was fun to be familiar with many of the places and phenomena being described.

P.S. The book ends with a quote from my boss at the International Institute of Minnesota

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Some of the stories are beautifully lyrical and some are clunky, but I think she is writing them as the individual speaks them to her, so the style varies.
What strikes me is the sheer hassle, terror, bureaucracy, and uncertainty that these people endured to escape their countries. The average American has no clue. Is everyone glad to be in the US? No. There is loss and disconnection and regret. But there is also strength, resilience, and pride. I learned a lot.

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautiful collection of stories of refugees that have resettled in Minnesota is such a treasure of important perspectives. I think it probably should be a must read for every Minnesotan. As these are the stories of our neighbors, co-workers and students among us. The author Kao Kalia Yang has detailed their journeys in prose that makes you feel like you are in each of their situations. I listened to the audio and enjoyed the different voices in the collection.

[Nat · Rating 4 out of 5]

"How do we let people have their own voices in a system that is designed against their stories?" Kalia Yang has earned her trust as a storyteller over years of deep listening, and this book is a polyphonic response to the question. I learned so much!

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the stories, wow! Amazing author!

[Lin Salisbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

In SOMEWHERE IN THE UNKNOWN WORLD; A COLLECTIVE REFUGEE MEMOIR, acclaimed author Kao Kalia Yang compiles the stories of refugees from diverse backgrounds. Whether from Syria, Thailand, Afghanistan, or any of the other countries represented in these 15 harrowing stories of escape, the refugees have one thing in common – outrageous hope and courage. With empathy and compassion, Yang tells the stories of these survivors who ultimately came to Minnesota to build new lives for themselves and future generations:

The story a Syrian woman whose comfortable life on the skirts of Damascus disappeared overnight. “The war came to us in two days’ time. One day we had electricity and running water. The next day these modern conveniences were gone and the schools were closed.”

The story of a family who opened a restaurant on University Avenue in St. Paul that attracted an array of Southeast Asian refugees , resettlement workers, teachers, and friends, serving pho, the national dish of Vietnam. The success of this restaurant allowed the family to send all five of their children to college, and ushered in an age of revitalization along University Avenue. Their son, following college and a career in corporate America as an analyst, opened a Vietnamese Bistro in the same space and in 2020 was nominated for a James Beard Best Chef Midwest Award.

Other stories in the book, tell of the horrors of war, harrowing escapes, years languishing in refugee camps, and families separated by continents. The story of Fong Lee, who as he was escaping Laos across the Mekong River with his wife, three boys, and baby girl, is confronted by two orphans, a six-year-old girl with her three-year-old sister strapped to her back, who begs him to take her sister safely to the other side, away from the violence and the soldiers who are rushing toward the river’s edge. He has no room for them, but promises to come back for them; before he is able to turn around, he hears the cracking of guns from the tree line and the girls are gone. He lives with the memory of their eyes, “round like the moon in the night sky” begging him for help.

A refugee, Yang tells us, is someone who is unable to remain in their home country because of persecution based on their race, religion, nationality, or politics. Every October the president of the United States , in consultation with Congress, sets a cap for the number of refugees we can take in as a country. Each refugee is expected to take out a no-interest loan for his or her flight, and upon arrival each receives a onetime grant of $1125 from the federal government. For ninety days, the refugee is assisted by a sponsoring organization and then they are expected to make it on their own.

She writes that the immigrants and refugees that come to America are often fleeing countries and wars whose history is absent from American consciousness.

“Life will teach you the strength of the human heart, not of its weakness or fragility,” Kao Kalia Yang’s father tells her. It is a lesson that Yang passes on to her children and one that she hopes will fortify the hearts of children everywhere, passed on through the stories in Somewhere in the Unknown World. The book is dedicated to “Refugees from everywhere – men, women, and children whose fates have been held by the interests of nations, whose rights have been contested and denied, whose thirst and hunger go unheeded and unseen.” Through this important work, we see them, Kalia, we see them.

I recommend SOMEWHERE IN THE UNKNOWN WORLD for readers interested in global politics, immigration policy, and those who have loved the poetic voice and masterful storytelling of Kao Kalia Yang in her books THE LATEHOMECOMER and THE SONG POET. Listen to my interview with Kao Kalia Yang on February 25 at 7:00 pm on 90.7 WTIP, stream it from the web at www.wtip.org, or listen to it on my Superior Reads blog at www.superiorreads.blog.

This is Lin Salisbury with Superior Reviews.

[Beachbumgarner · Rating 4 out of 5]

While reading these stories of refugees who struggle in their homelands and finally come to settle in the USA, specifically Minnesota, only to take up new struggles, I was struck by a couple of things. One, that it requires a deep well of courage and fortitude to carry your own truth and your own story, as this author did when she took a similar journey from her home to Minnesota. But to take on the stories and truths of all these others, to commit to conveying the pain and grief and hardships of them all, strikes me as a very heavy load to carry. I applaud Kao Kalia Yang's courage and determination in completing this book.

Two, I once had a project in college which required me to interview incoming authors and transcribe those interviews for the college paper. There are so many active innuendos in face to face speech and conversations that are very difficult to translate to the page. You have to figure out how to get around and beyond the "Um," and "Well?" and "I'm not sure what I can say about that..." phrases which are so common. And that doesn't even take into consideration the language barriers I'm sure she had to deal with. So, I also applaud her tenacity with language.

Finally, we've all had to survive something in our lives, but not all to the same degree, not all life and death, not all at the same time losing, family, country, culture, language, dreams. Reading these stories, I was both amazed that anyone survives this kind of upheaval and also inspired that they did. I was most astounded by the simple things--the mothers who woke up in the morning and made food for their families (no matter where they were and with whatever they had at hand) and then found water and then worked jobs if they could find them. One foot in front of the other seemed the most common response to give a better life to their children. For that I say thank you to each of these storytellers for sharing their stories and for the inspiration they gave.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful collection of refugee memoirs. I read it for two reasons: 1) I loved Kao Kalia Yang’s first book, The Latehomecomer, and was eager to read her subsequent works, and 2) I wanted to educate myself on refugee stories, especially in the light of the invasion of Ukraine.
One line from the book especially resonated with me. “Judge me, judge us, only after you have heard our stories.” Hearing someone’s story is so important, so powerful. It’s so easy to callous our minds against someone, not knowing their experience. Yang’s collection has a mix of stories, all centered around Minnesota. Some leave you hopeful. Some leave you sad. Some leave you questioning, what can be done?
I felt an extra connection because of the Minnesota aspect of the book. Many of the places mentioned were near the school where I taught 5th grade Hmong students. One of the stories details a bistro just one block down from a favorite bakery of ours. It felt like stories from a familiar home. One man even resettled in Minnesota just 2 months before my husband and I moved there. It puts it into perspective. These things are not things of the past. They are still ongoing. It’s important for us to keep looking to hear the stories of others, to keep building compassion for our neighbors, no matter where they come from.

[Holly Ristau · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 2024 book recommendation of the year is Somewhere in the Unknown World:A Collective Refugee Memoir by Kai Kaila Yang. These are the true stories of people who now live among us in Minnesota. It shows what people have had to do to stay alive and exist and it's given me so much to think about. These stories are gripping and well-written. There are no holds barred in telling the things our country and our state has done wrong, but also right. I wonder now about every back story today's immigrants have. At the books ending a social worker struggles with the fact that "we're resettling people into poverty". It's been a very good centering book to finish this horrific year.

I guess the question I keep asking is this: How can "Christians" hate immigrants? What would Jesus Do? Well, according to today's trumpized christians, he'd let them die. Todays christians don't seem to use the wwjd litmus test to make important decisions. I'm pretty sure it's because today's christians don't want to be like Christ. UGH.

[Karin Jensen]

"On a bright day that I saw only through the filtered doorway of my home, a middle-aged man arrived at our house. He said, “Your son has fifteen minutes before we go.” He brought me a change of clothes: a pair of blue jeans, walking shoes, and a T-shirt. He said to take nothing." -- From Somewhere In The Unknown World

So begins a young man’s fateful journey from Afghanistan to Minnesota. Young Afghanzada worked as a bookkeeper for the U.S. International Development Agency, hoping to do some good for his war-stricken people. But when the Taliban found out, they repeatedly threatened him until he did the only thing he could think of to survive.

He paid $25,000 to a trafficker to sneak him out of his country. He had inquired first about getting a Special Immigrant Visa through the U.S. State Department. He was qualified as an employee of the U.S. government. However, there was a three-year wait, and he didn’t have that long.

A Collective Refugee Memoir
Somewhere in the Unknown World is a collection of stories written by Kao Kalia Yang on behalf of fourteen refugees. Yang, herself a refugee of Laos, is the author of The Latehomecomer and The Song Poet, which chronicle her family’s stories.

While traveling across the country to speak about her work, she met other refugees and resettlement workers. She discovered that the isolating loneliness so many of them felt was a shared experience. Many asked her to tell their stories.

At first, she was reticent to do so. However, over the last few years, she witnessed an America questioning its long history of refugee resettlement, an America that began to increasingly cast its vulnerable immigrants and incoming refugees to the margins of society.

She felt compelled to share something about the refugee lives around her, to show, as she describes in her prologue, “our shared understanding of war and hunger for peace, our vulnerabilities, and strengths, and to offer our powerful truths to a country I love.”

Minnesota and Refugees
Although the refugees in this memoir come from all over the world (Bosnia, Liberia, Syria, Burma, Iraq, Kandahar, and more), the thread that binds their stories together is that they all settled in Minnesota, where Yang also lives.

Before reading Somewhere in the Unknown World, I never realized that Minnesota has the highest number of refugees per capita of any state. In the words of the Immigrant Law Center of Minnesota, “We have a rich history of welcoming refugees because Minnesotans believe in treating all people with respect, dignity, and compassion.”

The Law Center further notes that “After their first years of adjustment, refugee incomes rise rapidly, and so do their contributions to taxes and the economy. Refugees pay back the cost of the airfare for coming to the U.S.”

Back in the 1980s, Minnesota’s University Avenue had become a skid row, lined with church thrift stores, boarded businesses, prostitutes, and bloody, discarded needles. Now, however, University is a busy commercial district with Halal and Mexican butchers and grocery stores catering to new arrivals from Ethiopia, Bosnia, Iraq, and China. In sum, the stateless have revived a dying strip of America, even as they carry a heavy burden of economic and human loss.

Heartbreaking but Inspirational

The stories are compelling. There are accounts of what it is like to lose your home and sometimes your family and start from scratch in a foreign country. This is essential reading but also heartbreaking. We learn what it means to be stateless and have one's fate left up to government agencies and bureaucracy.

“I was not a criminal, and yet I was being treated like one. I started getting angry, too. Who is responsible for my situation? What had I done? What makes them better than me, the ones asking the questions, the ones with the power to make me shake and quiver?” – From Somewhere in the Unknown World

We see America in its extremes of wealth and poverty from an immigrant’s view.

“I saw homeless people with their bags and shopping carts beside them. I saw broken concrete and uneven sidewalks. I thought, I’ve made a mistake. How can America go into the world and speak of humanity, of peace and prosperity, when there are so many within its own borders looking for help, searching for meaning, worth, a chance at a good life?” – From Somewhere in the Unknown World

Some stories are inspirational in the way the refugees begin to craft new lives, although the measure of their success is sometimes heartbreaking in its own way.

In Afghanzada’s case, after being allowed to settle in Minnesota, he secures a full-time job as an office manager at a community college then works nights and weekends as a Lyft driver to support his family in Afghanistan.

“It brings me pride. Because of me, my family is middle class; they have food to eat, my baby brother can go to school…Someone in America sees them clearly and loves them completely.” – From Somewhere in the Unknown World

Context
Most of the stories plunge us into the thick of the action, the culminating event that causes the protagonist to conclude that he or she has no choice but to flee.

My one critique is that I wish there were a paragraph or two at the start or end of each tale providing a summary of the historical events surrounding each person’s story. Places and events are referenced that I recognize from headlines, but I often don’t recall the details. I would appreciate a bit more background.

Recommendation
Somewhere in the Unknown World provides a candid and intimate view of the consequences of war and the unfathomable decisions required in these circumstances. It teaches empathy and allows us a glimpse into lives most of us would never otherwise be exposed to. I recommend it as thought-provoking non-fiction.

This review first appeared on News Break on 1/23/21

[Lara Lillibridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is unlike anything I've seen in the memoir category: a "collective memoir" with narratives from people from all over the world (Bosnia, Liberia, Syria, the Karenni in Burma, Iraq, Kandahar, and more) who settled in Minnesota. Male and female perspectives are represented, and while every story is unique, they all are testimonies of courage and resilience. In “Certificate of Humanity,” Afghanzada Achekzai said,
“I started thinking about being independent again, being the maker of my destiny, the maker of my life. I began thinking about America.”

We travel from all over the globe, through refugee camps, all to the United States, and moreover, all to Minnesota. I was fascinated to learn that Minnesota is home to more refugees per capita than any other state.

The prose is simply beautiful—lyrical yet without pretense.

[the overstuffed bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co. for this advance reader's copy of Somewhere in the Unknown Word by Kao Kalia Yang.

To say that I enjoyed reading this book would be wrong. Don't get me wrong, this was a good read but the stories told here are devastating accounts of what it is like to lose your home and become a refugee. Essential reading for sure, but these are not feel-good stories. These are stories that should help you understand what it means to be stateless, to have your fate left up to governmental agencies and bureaucracy. Some of these stories are heartbreaking, some are inspirational, all are necessary accounts.

This is not a book written by Kao Kalia Yang, although she is listed as the author. Each story is told by the person who lived it, as they should be. I can't state it enough, this is essential reading for these times in America and the world.