Once We Were Strangers - by Shawn Smucker (Paperback)

About the Book

The compelling true story of how an American man became friends with a Syrian refugee and his family and what that relationship taught him about grace, compassion, and finding our shared humanity across cultural, religious, and political divides.

Book Synopsis

In 2012, Mohammad fled his Syrian village along with his wife and four sons, escaping to Jordan through the wilderness. Four years later he sat across from Shawn Smucker in a small conference room in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Though neither of them knew it, Mohammad had arrived in Shawn's life just in time.

This is the story of a friendship. It is the story of a middle-aged writer struggling to make a living and a Syrian refugee struggling to create a life for his family in a strange and sometimes hostile land. It's the story of two fathers hoping for the best, two hearts seeking compassion, two lives changed forever. It's the story of our moment in history and the opportunities it gives us to show love and hospitality to the sojourner in our midst.

Anyone who has felt torn between the desire for security and the desire to offer sanctuary to those fleeing war and violence will find Shawn Smucker a careful and loving guide on the road to mercy and unity.

From the Back Cover

In 2012, Mohammad fled his Syrian village along with his wife and four sons. Four years later he sat across from Shawn Smucker in a small conference room in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Though neither of them knew it, Mohammad had arrived in Shawn's life just in time.

This is the story of a friendship. It is the story of a middle-aged writer struggling to make a living and a Syrian refugee struggling to create a life for his family in a strange and sometimes hostile land. It's the story of two fathers hoping for the best, two hearts seeking compassion, two lives changed forever. It's the story of our moment in history--and the opportunities it gives us to show love and hospitality to the sojourner in our midst.


"A glimpse into the bridge-building, fear-silencing, life-affirming gift of cross-cultural friendship. This is an important and timely message."--Peter Greer, president and CEO, HOPE International; coauthor of Rooting for Rivals

"This intimate portrayal of a friendship at a time when too many fear 'the other' in their midst . . . is illuminating--and necessary."--Anne Bogel, author of I'd Rather Be Reading: The Delights and Dilemmas of the Reading Life

"This story needs to be told--and then? It needs to be replicated in some way throughout all our communities."--Tsh Oxenreider, author of At Home in the World: Reflections on Belonging While Wandering the Globe


Shawn Smucker is the author of the novels The Day the Angels Fell and The Edge of Over There. He lives with his wife and six children in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. You can find him online at www.shawnsmucker.com.

About the Author

Shawn Smucker is the author of the novels The Day the Angels Fell and The Edge of Over There. He lives with his wife and six children in the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. You can find him online at www.shawnsmucker.com.