Tara's life is turned upside down almost overnight, as she must abandon her usual lifestyle as a typical 12-year-old Kurd to assume that of a refugee fleeing from the Iraqi secret police with her family. Tara and her parents hide first in the mountains of Kurdistan in northern Iraq before moving on to Iran. In all of the settings, from a rustic mountain dwelling to internment camps, Tara must deal with the ordeals and disorientation of being kept from one's home. This contemporary story creates a compelling image of the large and small scale problems, from social to political to economic to religious, encountered by those forced to retreat from all that is familiar. (Age 12 and older)

Kiss the Dust by Elizabeth Laird is an unforgettable, award-winning novel of conflict, persecution and the hardships faced by refugees.

Tara is an ordinary teenager. Although her country, Kurdistan, is caught up in a war, the fighting seems far away. It hasn't really touched her. Until now.

The secret police are closing in. Tara and her family must flee to the mountains with only the few things they can carry. It is a hard and dangerous journey - but their struggles have only just begun. Will anywhere feel like home again?