Fabio Geda

Howard Curtis

in-the-sea-there-are-crocodiles

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more

source_10558

By signing up, I confirm that I'm over 16. To find out what personal data we collect and how we use it, please visit our <a href="/company/about-us/notices/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a>

Keep an eye out for a confirmation in your inbox

Stories, ideas and giveaways to help you spark young imaginations

source_10972

The latest books, activities and tips to help you grow little readers

source_10975

About us

About Us (Header 4)

john-le-carre-a-legacy-of-spies-960-2.jpg

Margaret Atwood

Richard Osman

Malorie Blackman

George Orwell

marian_keyes_mobile_320x200px.png

Elif Shafak

shonfaye

Authors (Header 3)

Books (Header 2)

Company

Features (Header 1)

Penguin Shop (Header 5)

Useful links

In the Sea There Are Crocodiles

A frank, revealing and clear-eyed testament of the experiences faced by a young asylum-seeker in the contemporary world

A moving and eye-opening account chronicles hardships no child should have to endure, mitigated by intermittent kindnesses

This little gem, beautifully and unobtrusively translated, will raise tears of sorrow and joy

The threat of arrest and deportation is constant, with worse to fear at the hands of traffickers... A remarkable story

The personal stories of refugees and their life-or-death battles are usually lost in between the lines of news reports. In direct and undecorated prose, Fabio Geda beautifully delivers the human experience of Enaiatollah, a ten-year-old Afghani boy, whose will for survival is more than remarkable. In the Sea There Are Crocodiles will make you laugh and cry, and it will also make you a better person. Everyone should read this book

Marina Nemat, author of 'Prisoner of Tehran'

If anything, this book is more chilling than heart-warming. Though Enaiatollah survives the Iranian shooting, the man next to him is killed. After a three-day journey in the false bottom of a lorry, during which he is unable to get out even to go to the toilet, he "pee[s] blood for the next few weeks". And though he survives the journey across the Aegean in an inflatable dinghy that comes, with oars, in a box ("an Ikea flatpack for illegals"), his young companion is tossed overboard in a storm and "taken by the darkness"... What is clear from this beautiful book is that young Enaiatollah finally reaches Turin and, much to his delight... finally goes back to school. An end one might go so far as to call heart-warming

A journey of true grit and determination for one so young in years. The story alone is superb; add in Enaiatollah's engaging prose and this books sings on the page. Highly recommended

I read somewhere that the decision to emigrate comes from a need to breathe. 
 
The hope of a better life is stronger than any other feeling. My mother decided it was better to know I was in danger far from her; but on the way to a different future, than to know I was in danger near her; but stuck in the same old fear. 
 
At the age of ten, Enaiatollah Akbari was left alone to fend for himself. This is the heartbreaking, unforgettable story of his journey from Afghanistan to Italy in an attempt to find a safe place to live.

A beautiful, heartbreaking novel based on the true story of an Afghan boy's journey in search of a place to call home.

Born in Turin in 1972, Fabio Geda is an Italian novelist who works with children in difficulties. He writes for several Italian magazines and newspapers, and teaches creative writing at the Italian school of storytelling, Scuola Holden, in Turin. This is his first book to be translated into English.

In the Sea There Are Crocodiles

Select a format:

Retailers:

Summary

Reviews

About the author

Fabio Geda

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter