From the Bookshelves: Call Me American: A Memior by Abdi Nor Iftin

Call Me American:  A Memior by Abdi Nor Iftin

Abdi Nor Iftin first fell in love with America from afar. As a child, he learned English by listening to American pop and watching action films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. When U.S. marines landed in Mogadishu to take on the warlords, Abdi cheered the arrival of these Americans, who seemed as heroic as those of the movies.

Sporting American clothes and dance moves, he became known around Mogadishu as Abdi American, but when the radical Islamist group al-Shabaab rose to power in 2006, it became dangerous to celebrate Western culture. Desperate to make a living, Abdi used his language skills to post secret dispatches, which found an audience of worldwide listeners. Eventually, though, Abdi was forced to flee to Kenya.

In an amazing stroke of luck, Abdi won entrance to the U.S. in the annual visa lottery, though his route to America did not come easily. Parts of his story were first heard on the BBC World Service and This American Life. Now a proud resident of Maine, on the path to citizenship, Abdi Nor Iftin’s dramatic, deeply stirring memoir is truly a story for our time: a vivid reminder of why America still beckons to those looking to make a better life.

The publisher, Penguin Random House, shares this recently published excerpt of the book. In the excerpt, Abdi describes the day that American troops arrives in Somalia to provide humanitarian aid during Operation Rescue Hope. I hope you have the chance to read through this inspiring moment of resilience and hope.

Abdi grew up in Somalia, and fell in love with American culture through his exposure to pop music and action movies. Growing up during the Somali Civil War, he dreamed of escaping the violence around him by moving to America. Call Me American recounts Abdi’s journey from Somalia to a refugee camp in Kenya to (finally) the United States.

KJ