Refugee High

"A wondrous tapestry of stories, of young people looking for a home. With deep, immersive reporting, Elly Fishman pulls off a triumph of empathy. Their tales and their school speak to the best of who we are as a nation—and their struggles, their joys, their journeys will stay with you."

—Alex Kotlowitz, author of There Are No Children Here

"As the only refugee in an Oklahoma high school in the 1990s, I used to have fantasies like this: what if a school existed that represented the wider world, everyone displaced, everyone applying for the same papers, pockets of society not defined by ill-fitting American markers, but following the precise contours of my own continent, its many faiths and colors? Refugee High is the realization of that daydream, and a riveting real-life answer to those youthful mysteries. A deep dive into an experiment I’ve always wanted to witness, meticulously researched, lovingly written, and rich in revelation."

—Dina Nayeri, the author of The Ungrateful Refugee and Refuge

"Beautifully written, deeply reported, and bursting with humanity, Refugee High is a book you will read in a hurry and remember forever."

—Jonathan Eig, author of Ali: A Life and Luckiest Man 

"Elly Fishman’s Refugee High takes readers inside one of the most remarkable schools in the country. Fishman brings to life the individual experiences of the school’s teenagers, teachers and administrators, their struggles and joys. Through these intimate accounts, Refugee High shows the widening conflicts—of a city, a nation and world—that concern us all."

—Ben Austen, author of High-Risers: Cabrini-Green and the Fate of American Public Housing

"A riveting immersion into the world of Chicago’s Sullivan High School, where half the students are immigrants or refugees. Through the lives of four young people from different corners of the globe, Elly Fishman vividly portrays the perils and possibilities that confront those who come to the United States in search of a better life. No reader will be able to forget these students and the almost unimaginable hurdles they struggle to surmount, and no reader will forget the teachers who dedicate themselves to preventing the American Dream from becoming a betrayal."

—Drew Faust, President Emeritus, Harvard University

"Educators and general readers alike will find this vividly intimate work insightful."

—Library Journal

"Fishman unearths the inner lives of her subjects with care and precision, and skillfully balances lighter moments (soccer games, TikTok dances) with harrowing turns of events. The result is a powerful portrait of resilience in the face of long odds."

—Publishers Weekly

EVENTS

Refugee High Book Launch- Seminary Coop, American Writers' Museum

August 10, 2021,

Please join us, Seminary Coop, and the American Writers' Museum for the launch of Refugee High: Coming of Age in America. 

Register here: https://www.semcoop.com/event/elly-fishman-refugee-high