Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck is a novel about African refugees in Germany. Translated from the German by Susan Bernofsky. A retired professor comes across a group of refugees living in tents in Alexanderplatz and becomes interested in learning more about them. He slowly befriends them and hears their stories.

This is both a beautifully written, poetic novel and a truly heartbreaking one, although ultimately hopeful. It couldn’t be more timely as we are faced with decisions of how to treat refugees at our borders. These decisions are usually made with little or no understanding of the people whose lives are unimaginable to most Americans and Europeans. A profound and important book, highly recommended.