Other Words from Home begins on a coastal town in Syria. Jude lives with her mother, father, and brother in a beautiful seaside town that typically hosts many tourists.
As the Syrian Civil war threatens to get worse and worse, Jude's family decides that for their safety, Jude and her pregnant mother must flee to the United States. Jude and her mother move in with their Uncle Mazin, his wife, Aunt Michelle, and daughter Sarah in a historic section of Cincinnati, Ohio called Clifton.
The journey from Syria to the United States is a long one - 6,058 miles! Jude's mother tells her how lucky they are to have been able to come when they did. As the war progresses and there are many other refugees trying to flee, they find that it is not as easy to enter the United States.
The story is set in modern day. The Syrian Civil War began in March 2011 when pro-democracy protests erupted around the country in an effort to unseat Bashar Al Assad's repressive regime. The war continues as of this writing in May 2021.
SYRIA
UNITED STATES
DISTANCE FROM HOME TO HOME
MODERN DAY -
SYRIAN CIVIL WAR (2011- __ )
SETTING in Other Words for Home
Damascus
Aleppo
Coastal towns in Syria such as Latakia
SYRIA
IRAQ
IRAN
JORDAN
SAUDI ARABIA
ISRAEL
TURKEY
EGYPT
LEBANON
GEORGIA
ARMENIA
AZERBAIJAN
MEDITERRANEAN SEA
BLACK SEA
RED
SEA
PERSIAN GULF
CASPIAN
SEA
RUSSIA
KUWAIT
Cincinnati
OHIO
6,058 mi
PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES
CYPRUS