Summary

Daniel stops his story because he has news. His dad, Masoud ebne Jamshid Nayeri “is coming to America” (279). When he tells his classmates, their responses make Daniel realize he has made his dad into a myth (279). In order to prove his dad is real, he convinces Mrs. Miller to let him come to school for a visit.

After Daniel’s family left Dubai, they went to Italy. The refugee camp was really the Hotel Barba. They “were the only Iranians,” but lived with other “homeless people from . . . a bunch of other places” (282). Living there was like being in limbo.

Daniel’s best friend while at Hotel Barba was Ali Shekari. Even though he was 17 and Daniel was seven, Ali was kind. Because the food was so bad, Ali and Daniel stole peaches from nearby orchards. Daniel knows “it was wrong,” but the memory...