Novels about Immigration

American Dirt

Author: Jeanine Cummins

Year: 2020

Genre: Fiction

More info: January 2020 Oprah’s Book Club Pick

Age Range: 16+

Plot

The story starts with Lydia and her 8-year-old son Luca as they hide from the cartel, who are massacring their entire extended family. The opening is heart-pounding — the jolt it gives to your heart never lets up. ⁣

Lydia and Luca then have to make the perilous journey North as migrants. What they go through as they try to outrun the cartel is devastating, thought-provoking, and scary. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I never knew that a scene about putting a band-aid on a blister could be so suspenseful.⁣ I don’t want to tell any details because this story is about the unfolding of real-time events and the backstory that led to the massacre.

Trigger Warnings

Murder, Rape

Why Kirsten loves it

My heart did not stop pounding the entire time I read this book. I know that there is a lot of controversy surrounding this book. However, I read this book for what it was- a work of fiction rather than non-fiction.

Find this book in: Books About Immigration / Best Oprah’s Book Club Books/ Oprah Book Club List 2020

Banyan Moon

Author: Thao Thai

Year: 2023

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

More info: July 2023 Read With Jenna Book Club Pick

Age Range: 15+

Plot

Minh, Ann’s grandmother, has died leaving her home to Ann and her mother, right during a time when Ann’s life is in upheaval. She just found out her long-term boyfriend is cheating on her and she’s now pregnant with his baby.

Traveling back to Florida to see the Banyan Tree house, Ann also has a chance to reconnect with her estranged mother, Huơng or sever the tie to her roots completely.

Why Kirsten likes it

I loved Ann’s journey to self-discovery and the flashbacks that told Minh’s life story and how she immigrated from Vietnam. My only caveat is that the ending wasn’t all I wanted it to be. It was good but left time wanting more from this family sage.

Find this book in: Read with Jenna 2024 / Family Sagas / Read with Jenna Book Club List 2023

Transcendent Kingdom

Author: Yaa Gyasi

Year: 2020

Genre: Contemporary Fiction

More info: September 2020 Read with Jenna Book Club Pick

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 16+

Plot

Gifty is a PhD candidate at Stanford who is studying depression and addiction through mice. Her brother died of a heroin overdose after becoming addicted to oxy after a sports injury and her suicidal mother lives her life in bed.

Covering drug addiction, immigration, racism, and more, this story is as entertaining as it is stimulating. Its discussion of drug addiction’s impact on the larger family unit was reminiscent of Long Bright River.

Trigger Warnings

Addiction, drug abuse, mental illness, racism.

Why Kirsten loves it

This is a beautifully written and powerful book. I also kept having to remind myself that it was a contemporary fiction story and not a memoir because the emotion and knowledge expressed in the book were so believable.

Find this book in: Books by Female BIPOC Authors / 20 Best Books of 2020 / Best Read With Jenna Books / Read with Jenna Book Club List 2020/ Novels About Addiction

Behold the Dreamers

Author: Imbolo Mbue

Year: 2016

Genre: Fiction

More info: June 2017 Oprah’s Book Club Pick

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 16+

Plot

Honestly, I love this story about immigration, Wall Street, and the American dream. Jende and Nedi’s story about their move from Cameroon and how it affects their marriage and their morals was compulsively readable. It starts in 2007 when Jende takes a job as a chauffeur for a wealthy Lehman Brothers executive, and then Nedi gets employed at the family’s summer home in the Hamptons. Just as the Jende and Nedi are starting to settle in, the downfall of Lehman Brothers upends their lives.

Trigger Warnings

Drug Use, Alcoholism

Why Kirsten loves it

This contemporary fiction story was recommended to me so often in the past few years that I was worried it wouldn’t live up to the hype. My library hold finally came due so I took the plunge. WHAT TOOK ME SO LONG? I couldn’t put it down. Don’t wait as long as I did to read this amazing novel.

Find this book in: Novels About Africa / Contemporary Fiction Novels / Books Set in New York / Best Oprah’s Book Club Books / Novels About Immigration

The Sun is Also a Star

Author: Nicola Yoon

Year: 2016

Genre: YA Romance

Spice Rating:💋💋

Age Range: 12+

Plot

This National Book Award finalist is the story of Natasha and Daniel. They meet 12 hours before Natasha and her family are deported to Jamaica. Where will their story take them? You can’t fall in love in 12 hours, can you?

Trigger Warnings

Racism, Deportation, Suicidal thoughts

Why Jackie loves it

This Young Adult novel is smart and well-written. I loved reading it. Yoon has done something very difficult with this book. She switches back and forth between a few different narrators and still manages to maintain the flow of the story.

Find this book in: Coming-of-age Books for Teens / Books Set in New York / Thought-provoking Novels / Books by Female BIPOC Authors / Fun Books for Teens / Best YA Romance Books / Novels About Immigration

Historical Fiction Novels About Immigration

Dominicana

Author: Angie Cruz

Year: 2019

Genre: Historical Fiction

More info: October 2019 GMA Book Club Pick

Age Range: 16+

Plot

15-year-old Ana dreams of moving to America, envisioning a life of glamour, wealth, and freedom. She accepts the hand of a husband twice her age to fulfill her dreams but is in for quite an awakening when she makes it to the Bronx. Miserable in her life, Ana is forced to choose between duty to her family and her dreams.

Why Kirsten loves it

I was blown away by Cruz’s latest coming-of-age novel which explores her Dominican roots. Her immigrant story was filled with strength and courage throughout a year-and-a-half, as meek Ana is molded into a strong woman. I can see why this book was chosen as the first book for the Good Morning America Book Club #gifted by Libro.FM

Find this book in: Coming-of-age Books for Adults / Female BIPOC Authors / Books Set in the 1960s / GMA Book Club List 2019/ Novels About Immigration

Table for Two

Author: Amor Towles

Year: 2024

Genre: Historical Fiction Short Stories

More info: New York Times Bestseller

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 14+

Plot

With Table for Two, famed author Amor Towles re-released his novella, Eve in Hollywood, along with a brand new collection of short stories set in New York City. Each story is an ode to a different part of life in New York, telling the stories of a Russian immigrant, a rare bookseller, an opera bootlegger, and a stranded traveler, among others.

And for Rules of Civility fans, Eve is a character from that novel who was last seen boarding a train to Hollywood. Her adventures out west were an absolute delight!

Why Kirsten loves it

Though I am not typically into short stories, Amor Towles is a favorite of mine so I had to read this collection. Each short story could have been a novel of it’s own, but the novella about Eve was the shining star for me.

Find this book in: Old Hollywood Books / Summer Read 2024 / Books Set in NYC / New Historical Fiction Books

Cutting for Stone

Author: Abraham Verghese

Year: 2009

Genre: Historical Fiction

More info: National Bestseller

Age Range: 18+

Plot

Marion and Shiva Stone are twin brothers who are born secretly to a nun and a surgeon. They are orphaned when their mother dies and their father disappears.

This sweeping family saga is set over three decades, from Ethiopia to America, as Ethiopia is on the brink of a revolution.

Trigger Warnings

Medical Trauma

Why Jackie loves it

This is another epic family saga that is a stunning choice for fans of the sub-genre.

Find this book in: Novels About Africa / Family Saga Books / Immigration Novels

Joy Luck Club: A Novel

Author: Amy Tan

Year: 2006

Genre: Historical Fiction/ Fiction

More info: New York Times Bestseller

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 14+

Plot

A story about four mother-daughter pairs who recently immigrated to San Francisco from China, this classic is often seen on required reading lists for high schools. The story spans 40 years, starting in 1949, and is often profound in its examination of the mother-daughter dynamic.

Why Jackie loves it

I recently started playing mah-jongg, so I can appreciate this book so much more now.

Find this book in: Novels About Immigration

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Author: Jamie Ford

Year: 2009

Genre: Historical Fiction

More info: New York Times Bestseller

Spice Rating:💋

Age Range: 14+

Plot

Two lovers are separated in the mists of war and are reunited later in life. The relationship between the characters is reminiscent of Outlander. The story is all about the treatment of Japanese immigrants in the United States during World War 2. I had no idea about the darker side of our country (and the internment camps) until I read this book. It was eye-opening.

Why Jackie loves it

Although I read this book years ago, the emotional impact of this book has stayed with me.

Find this book in: Novels about Immigration

Middle Grade

The Boy at the Back of the Class

Author: Onjali Q. Raúf

Year: 2020

Genre: Middle Grade Fiction

Age: 8 – 11

Plot

This is the story of Ahmet, a Syrian refugee, who ends up in Mrs. Khan’s 4th-grade class. At first, the students are wary of the strange new boy.

Soon, they learn that Ahmet has been separated from his family when he was trying to escape the war. Soon the kids were banding together to help Ahmet reunite with his family.

Trigger Warnings

Racism, Bullying

Why Kirsten loves it

My son cried while reading this book. The story touched his heart and evoked such compassion in him.

Find this book in: Best Books for 9-year-olds / Realistic Fiction / Middle Grade Books for Tweens

Front Desk

Author: Kelly Yang

Year: 2019

Genre: Middle Grade Fiction

Age: 9 – 11

More info: Front Desk #1, Winner of the Asian / Pacific American Award for Children’s Literature

Plot

This recently banned book tells the story of Mia and her family who are immigrants from China. Mia’s struggles to be successful in America are met with the divide between classes in her school, the racism she faces, and her family’s quest to make ends meet.

Trigger Warnings

Racism

Why Kirsten loves it

I loved learning from Mia and watching her problem-solve to help her family as they took over caring for the Calivista Motel. If you are looking for realistic fiction middle-grade books that skew a little younger, check out this realistic fiction book.

Find this book in: Coming-of-Age Books / Books for 10-year-olds / Audiobooks for Kids / Hotel Novels / Books about Poverty and It’s Impact

Refugee

Author: Alan Gratz

Year: 2017

Genre: Middle Grade Historical Fiction

Age: 10+

More info: New York Times Bestsellers

Plot

Three tales in one, this realistic fiction story is told in alternating chapters by three narrators. The stories feature Josef, a Jewish refugee fleeing WWII Germany, Isabel a Cuban girl on her way to Miami in 1994, and Mahmoud a Syrian refugee seeking asylum in Germany in 2015. The chapters rotate between the three characters and their stories do connect at the end in a meaningful and moving way.

Trigger Warnings

War, Child Death

Why Kirsten loves it

The characters are all about 13 years old but shoulder burdens that would be hard for an adult to handle. Gratz accurately portrays each child’s struggle with both grace and clarity – not shying away from difficult emotions and even death.

Find this book in: Best Books for 11-year-olds / Realistic Fiction Books for Kids / Middle Grade Books for Tweens /Best Books of 2017 / Books That Will Emotionally Wreck You / WWII Books for Kids / Full Cast Audiobooks for Kids