The Naked Don’t Fear the Water

by Matthieu Aikins

Published February 15, 2022 by Harper

This book…. I’ll admit parts were slow, parts were painful, and most of the book was just hard. It was hard to read about atrocities that happen right across this very small world. I spent a large majority of the book automatically reconciling this harrowing journey with something that must’ve happened ages ago then being torn back into reality with the realization that this book takes place within the last decade. Torn between feeling as though this must be fiction, but painfully realizing this is the reality for many. Friendship, love, and a glimmer of hope mark this one an urgent read.

As a daughter of immigrants, I can understand the motivation to leave a country for something better, but having never experienced warfare or the difficult journey, this story filled me with gratitude for my many liberties.