The Far Away Brothers (Adapted for Young Adults): Two Teenage Immigrants Making a Life in America

The inspiring true story about identical twin teenage brothers who escape El Salvador's violence to build new lives in California as undocumented immigrants, perfect for fans of Enrique's Journey and anyone interested in learning about the issues that underlie today's conversations about DACA and immigration reform.

Ernesto and Raúl Flores are identical twins, used to being mistaken for each other. As seventeen-year-olds living in rural El Salvador, they think the United States is just a far-off dream--it's too risky, too expensive to start a life there. But when Ernesto ends up on the wrong side of MS-13, one of El Salvador's brutal gangs, he flees the country for his own safety. Raúl, fearing that he will be mistaken for his brother, follows close behind.

Running from one danger to the next, the Flores twins make the harrowing journey north, crossing the Rio Grande and the Texas desert only to fall into the hands of immigration authorities. When they finally make it to the custody of their older brother in Oakland, California, the difficulties don't end.

While navigating a new school in a new language, struggling to pay off their mounting coyote debt, and anxiously waiting for their day in immigration court, Raul and Ernesto are also trying to lead normal teenage lives--dealing with girls, social media, and fitting in. With only each other for support, they begin the process of carving out a life for themselves, one full of hope and possibility.

Adapted for young adults from the award-winning adult edition, The Far Away Brothers is the inspiring true story of two teens making their way in America, a personal look at U.S. immigration policy, and a powerful account of contemporary immigration.

A Junior Library Guild Selection

Both touching and educational. . . . Gets inside the heads and hearts of immigrants. --Kirkus, Starred Review

A must for all young adult nonfiction shelves. --School Library Journal, Starred

Visceral and informative, this is a necessary read for today's youth. --Booklist

Author: Lauren Markham
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Published: 08/20/2019
Pages: 288
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 8.30h x 5.80w x 1.10d
ISBN: 9781984829771
Audience: Ages 9-12

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 6.4
Point Value: 9
Interest Level: Middle Grade Plus
Quiz #/Name: 504974 / Far Away Brothers: Two Teenage Immigrants Making a Life in America


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 06/15/2019 pg. 144
Booklist 06/01/2019 pg. 72

About the Author
Lauren Markham is a writer based in Berkeley, California, focusing on issues related to youth, migration, the environment, and her home state of California. Her work has appeared in outlets such as Harper's, the New Republic, Orion, the Guardian, the New York Times, and VQR, where she is a contributing editor. Lauren earned her MFA in Fiction Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. For over a decade, she has worked in the fields of refugee resettlement and immigrant education.

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