The heart-rending story of a child
Tampa
refugee who grew up to become a Fulbright scholar, highlighting the plight and potential of refugees everywhere.
When the Taliban were at the height of their power in 2001, Abbas Nazari's parents were faced with a choice: stay and face persecution in their homeland, or seek security for their young children elsewhere.
The family's desperate search for safety took them on a harrowing journey from the mountains of Afghanistan to a small fishing boat in the Indian Ocean, crammed with more than 400 other asylum seekers.
When their boat started to sink, they were mercifully saved by a cargo ship, the
. However, one of the largest maritime rescues in modern history quickly turned into an international stand-off, as Australia closed its doors to these asylum seekers.
The
had waded into the middle of Australia's national election, sparking their hardline policy of offshore detention. While many of those rescued by the
were the first inmates sent to the island of Nauru, Abbas and his family were some of the lucky few to be resettled in New Zealand.
More than twenty years after the
affair, Abbas tells his amazing story, from living under Taliban rule to spending a terrifying month at sea, and then building a new life at the bottom of the world.
A powerful and inspiring story for our times,
After the Tampa
celebrates the importance of never letting go of what drives the human spirit: hope.
'An astonishing story of endurance and triumph.'
Sydney Morning Herald
'
tells the heart-breaking, life affirming, heroic, remarkable story of fleeing the Taliban. A stunning book, beautifully, gently written, unflinching but also full of compassion and hope. This is a beautiful book.' John Campbell
, Breakfast 1