On the podcast: Telling the stories of refugees

Emily Morrow  //  Jun 23, 2017

On the podcast: Telling the stories of refugees

We have a new podcast episode! This week, we discuss the refugee crisis with actor Mandy Patinkin, his wife, Kathryn Grody, and author Alan Gratz.

Alan's forthcoming book, Refugee (available July 25, 2017), follows three children as they flee from three different evils in three different time periods. Josef is a Jewish boy fleeing Nazi Germany in the 1930s on a ship bound for Cuba. Isabel is a Cuban girl whose family leaves Cuba on a homemade raft bound for Florida in 1994. And Mahmoud is a Syrian boy whose family begins the perilous trek to Europe when his homeland is torn apart by violence and destruction in 2015.

Alan joins us via Skype to discuss the inspiration for Refugee, the research that he did to bring each child's story to life, and why it is so important that we shed light on these often untold stories — especially with our own children.

In the second half of the episode, actor Mandy Patinkin (Homeland, The Princess Bride) joins us in the studio with his wife, actress and writer Kathryn Grody, to talk about their work with the International Rescue Committee. Mandy and Kathryn have traveled to refugee camps in Serbia and Greece to meet with the men, women, and children who are living in legal limbo. They share stories of the people they've met, like 10-year-old artist Farhad Nouri, or the Alassy family.

This episode is long and emotional, but well worth the listen. Pop in your earbuds and press play here, or on iTunes or Google Play.