From Syria To America: A Teen Seeks A 'Safe Place' In The Universe

The last time Naji Aldabaan remembers feeling like a kid — mainly concerned with whether his mom would make him do homework or let him outside to play soccer — he was 10 years old. The year was 2011, and Syria was collapsing into civil war as nationwide protests against the government were followed by crackdowns and arrests. One day, soldiers knocked on his door. They had taken away Naji's uncles. Now they'd come for his father. No one knew why. Such was the random nature of the terror. Jake Halpern/Michael Sloan Jake Halpern/Michael Sloan Jake Halpern/Michael Sloan Jake Halpern/Michael Sloan Jake Halpern/Michael Sloan Reporter Jake Halpern, who chronicled Naji's story with artist Michael Sloan in a Pulitzer prize-winning series for the New York Times , was interested in telling the experience of a Syrian refugee family through the eyes of a young adult. Halpern is the co-author of several young adult novels , adventure stories where kids are left to their own resources to save