Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian man, set his car on fire and ruined his shop protesting on the “unfair” laws Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, the ruler of Tunisia since 1987, set. Ben Ali disobeyed the constitution of his country, which frustrated his people. The ruler promised his people more employment opportunities, freedom of the press, and said that he would step down in 2014 after the Bouazizi conflict. Eventually, the people knew that Ben Ali was just shutting them down when the real trouble happened. In protest, Bouazizi burned himself in front of millions claiming that he wanted freedom that Ben Ali did not provide him. A lack of economic opportunity in the country had reduced him to selling goods, and when his job was taken away from him, he ended his life in a horrifying public show. It was the rise of what became well known as the Arab Spring. The whole Middle East changed for this cause, and not for the good, as people suffered and are still suffering. This is where we are introduced to Doaa Al Zamel, the main character of the story, a real Syrian refugee teen!

The book, A Hope More Powerful Than the Sea, has lots of main settings. It all starts in Daraa, Syria, Doaa’s hometown. Doaa and her family fled Syria as refugees to Egypt, hoping they could settle there in peace for a short time until the war ended. However, after Mohamed Morsi got dropped from being president, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi told the Syrian refugees to return back to Syria because he didn’t want them there. So, Doaa and her fiance, Baseem, decided to go on an illegal trip to Europe to seek safety.

Doaa showcases a Syrian refugee who solely seeks peace. Melissa Fleming wrote the book as a secondary resource from Doaa’s point of view. Doaa had suffered in life until she found a peace way in Greece. Doaa lost everything except for hope. I love the questions the author imparts on the reader: “But I have to ask, why did Doaa have to risk her life, lose her fiance, and witness the death of five hundred others to finally arrive at this place of refuge and opportunity? What if Masa and her family had been given the chance to formally unite with their other family members already in northern Europe? What if none of them had to take that risk? What if there [was] no massive resettlements program for Syrians - the victims of the worst war of our times? Why are the neighboring countries and communities hosting five million Syrian refugees being offered so little funding and support for infrastructure and development? And, of course, the main question, why is so little being done to stop the wars, persecution, and poverty that drives so many people to flee for the shores of Europe?"

I’m going to leave you to answer these questions by reading the book, all while taking a closer look on the main one asked. After you read A Hope More Powerful Than the Sea, I'm curious to see which side you choose to support, the leaders of the countries or the refugees. Give A Hope More Powerful Than the Sea a shot because you won’t only learn about how war affects others, but how to have hope even in the darkest moments!

A Dog's Way Home

By: W. Bruce Cameron

Review Written By: Suzanne W.

A Dog’s Way Home is about an abandoned dog named Bella. She was really worried about being kicked out of her home with Mother Cat. One day, Lucas and Olivia came along and have been taking care of Bella ever since. They had a lot of fun together and kept on playing games like Don’t Chew Shoes and Ball. When Lucas was at work, Bella felt lonely and homesick. Suddenly, Bella saw a squirrel out the living room window that was open and dashed at it. Ever since then, she has been lost and mom was really worried. Bella has had tons of adventures with different owners and great friends. This book teaches us about the unbreakable bond of people and their pets and how much memories we create together.