We’re Not Going Home Today
Enne Koens’ books have been translated into six languages and have sold over 35.000 copies in the Netherlands
Author drew inspiration from the stories of child refugees
Author was nominated for the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 2020, the Premio Strega 2022 and the Premio Cento 2023
‘If you can flee once, you can do it again,’ says Dad.
‘Have we fled before?’
‘Yes, Mirza.’
One day, without warning, ten-year-old Mirza is taken back to his home country by his father, where civil war raged not so long ago. They move into the isolated house that belonged to his deceased grandparents. The house is extremely dilapidated and he is frequently woken in the night by screams from the mountains. At his new school, he does everything wrong, not knowing the rules or customs. Mirza longs for just one thing: to go home, back to his best friend. Then he discovers what his father has been hiding from him the whole time, and realizes that there is no going back…
Praise:
‘An importante exercise in empathy.’ – Trouw
‘The careful way in which Enne outlines Mirza’s awkwardness in a country where he does not understand the language or the people is poignant and convincing (…) In the Netherlands, where empathy for migrants is rapidly eroding, We’re Not Going Home Today is a much-needed book.’ – Het Parool
Rights sold to Gerstenberg Verlag (Germany)
