The Ungrateful Refugee is a powerful memoir and cultural exploration by Dina Nayeri that challenges assumptions about refugees and immigration. Weaving together her own journey — fleeing Iran as a child and navigating the U.S. asylum system — with the lived experiences of refugees from around the world, Nayeri uncovers the complexity of displacement, identity, and belonging. The narrative is compassionate, incisive, and unflinchingly honest, inviting readers to re-examine the stories we tell about people forced to leave their homes.
About the Author
Dina Nayeri is an internationally acclaimed writer and educator whose work spans fiction and nonfiction. Born in Iran during the revolution, she spent part of her childhood as a refugee before eventually settling in the United States. A graduate of Princeton, Harvard, and the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Nayeri has received numerous awards and honors for her writing, which centers on migration, identity, and social justice. Beyond The Ungrateful Refugee, her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, and other major publications.
Why We Chose It
At Ladle of Ferns, we believe that empathy and understanding grow through storytelling. The Ungrateful Refugee offers nuanced perspectives on migration that break through stereotypes and simplistic narratives. By centering real experiences — both personal and collective — this memoir deepens our awareness of systemic challenges facing refugees and invites meaningful reflection on compassion, policy, and human dignity. It’s a book that encourages empathy with intention.
