EPISODE · Jun 19, 2018 · 10H 36M
Abdi Nor Iftin presents Call Me American: A Memoir
from Best Full-Length Audiobooks in Biography & Memoir, History & Culture · host Abdi Nor Iftin
Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/333781 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Call Me American: A Memoir Author: Abdi Nor Iftin Narrator: Abdi Nor Iftin, Prentice Onayemi Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 10 hours 36 minutes Release date: June 19, 2018 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.57 of Total 7 Ratings of Narrator: 4.67 of Total 3 Genres: Social Science Publisher's Summary: Abdi Nor Iftin first fell in love with America from afar. As a child, he learned English by listening to American pop and watching action films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. When U.S. marines landed in Mogadishu to take on the warlords, Abdi cheered the arrival of these Americans, who seemed as heroic as those of the movies. Sporting American clothes and dance moves, he became known around Mogadishu as Abdi American, but when the radical Islamist group al-Shabaab rose to power in 2006, it became dangerous to celebrate Western culture. Desperate to make a living, Abdi used his language skills to post secret dispatches, which found an audience of worldwide listeners. Eventually, though, Abdi was forced to flee to Kenya. In an amazing stroke of luck, Abdi won entrance to the U.S. in the annual visa lottery, though his route to America did not come easily. Parts of his story were first heard on the BBC World Service and This American Life. Now a proud resident of Maine, on the path to citizenship, Abdi Nor Iftin's dramatic, deeply stirring memoir is truly a story for our time: a vivid reminder of why America still beckons to those looking to make a better life.
What this episode covers
Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/333781 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Call Me American: A Memoir Author: Abdi Nor Iftin Narrator: Abdi Nor Iftin, Prentice Onayemi Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 10 hours 36 minutes Release date: June 19, 2018 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.57 of Total 7 Ratings of Narrator: 4.67 of Total 3 Genres: Social Science Publisher's Summary: Abdi Nor Iftin first fell in love with America from afar. As a child, he learned English by listening to American pop and watching action films starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. When U.S. marines landed in Mogadishu to take on the warlords, Abdi cheered the arrival of these Americans, who seemed as heroic as those of the movies. Sporting American clothes and dance moves, he became known around Mogadishu as Abdi American, but when the radical Islamist group al-Shabaab rose to power in 2006, it became dangerous to celebrate Western culture. Desperate to make a living, Abdi used his language skills to post secret dispatches, which found an audience of worldwide listeners. Eventually, though, Abdi was forced to flee to Kenya. In an amazing stroke of luck, Abdi won entrance to the U.S. in the annual visa lottery, though his route to America did not come easily. Parts of his story were first heard on the BBC World Service and This American Life. Now a proud resident of Maine, on the path to citizenship, Abdi Nor Iftin's dramatic, deeply stirring memoir is truly a story for our time: a vivid reminder of why America still beckons to those looking to make a better life.
NOW PLAYING
Abdi Nor Iftin presents Call Me American: A Memoir
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
Mar 19, 2026 ·34m
Feb 18, 2026 ·11m
Feb 11, 2026 ·45m
Nov 12, 2025 ·35m
Oct 17, 2025 ·40m