Children’s Books for Afghan Refugees

Over the next few months, we expect to have upwards 90,000 new Afghan neighbors across the United States. By the time they come to the United States, these families have often been traveling for weeks, maybe months, having left both their homes in a mad dash for safety. Can you imagine not only leaving the only home you've ever known, but also coming to a new place with the tiny amount of belongings you managed to carry? The children accompanying these families have left their childhood, friends, school and sense of belonging overnight and the disarray of refugee situation is difficult to comprehend for most of them.

These families and their children have a long road ahead of them as they settle in the United States. Our hope is to give these children a semblance of home during this time, by bringing stories written and illustrated by Afghans for Afghans into their hands. Working with a successful Afghan children's book publisher, Boume Dana (بوم دانا), and its founder, education and economic development expert, Palwasha Mirbacha, our hope is to re-print a selection of their most inspiring stories (in Dari, Pashto and English) in the US for Afghan families resettling in the United States.

Our first book is called Boume Dana wa Dokhtare Ba-hosh (The Wise Owl and the Clever Girl), and is all about a young Afghan girl growing her confidence with the help of her friend, the wise owl.

Join us in launching a series of books to help Afghan children see themselves in the books they read, and maintain a sense of home as they navigate their new environment.

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For those preferring to make a tax-deductible donation via a nonprofit, please contact our nonprofit partner, Kolba.