Doctors Without Borders Prize
PEN Promotes Award
GLLI (Global Literature in Libraries Initiative) Translated YA Book Prize Shortlist
CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal Longlist
Library Journal “Best Book of the Year” selection
School Library Journal “Best Adult Book 4 Teens” selection
Comics Journal “Best Comic of the Year” selection
“Barroux’s raw illustrations and Bessora’s matter-of-fact text express the inhumanity at the heart of the refugee crisis.” ―School Library Journal “Best Adult Book 4 Teens” citation
Alpha's wife and son left Côte d'Ivoire months ago to join his sister-in-law in Paris, but Alpha has heard nothing from them since. With a visa, Alpha's journey to reunite with his family would take a matter of hours. Without one, he is adrift for over a year, encountering human traffickers in the desert, refugee camps in northern Africa, overcrowded boats carrying migrants between the Canary Islands and Europe's southern coast, and an unforgettable cast of fellow travelers lost and found along the way. Throughout, Alpha stays the course, carrying his loved ones' photograph close to his heart as he makes his perilous trek across continents.