Good Morning, Hope

A True Story of Refugee Twin Sisters and Their Triumph over War, Poverty, and Heartbreak

By: Argita Zalli, Detina Zalli

Narrated by: Allyson Voller

Born in poverty-stricken Albania, twin sisters Argita and Detina Zalli always dreamed of becoming doctors. Their parents scrimped and sacrificed, committed to giving them a better life. But then the unthinkable happened. In 1997, the government collapsed, plunging the country into anarchy and civil war. The twins' dream unraveled along with their homeland. Their parents had to find a way to leave and save their daughters' futures—not to mention their very lives.

It took over two years for the Zalli family to escape. After several dangerous attempts, they finally made it to England, where the thirteen-year-old twins believed everything would be much better. They soon found out otherwise. Now refugees, with little more than the clothes on their backs, the girls were mercilessly bullied and constantly afraid they would be sent back to Albania, and their parents would be sent to jail. Still, the twins persevered and learned how to navigate their harsh new reality. When tragedy struck yet again, the girls had to come to terms with the high price they had all paid to survive.

In Good Morning, Hope, Argita and Detina share their harrowing story of courage and resilience. It was the strength of their family, particularly the sisters' unique, unbreakable bond as twins, that nurtured and sustained them throughout their perilous ordeal.

©2023 Argita Zalli and Detina Zalli (P)2023 Tantor

Remarkable

Beautifully written, capturing key moments of this remarkable journey! Also a great example of the power of sisterhood.

1st page started with a bang. The rest of the book went downhill.

Too much whining by the twins and the mother. Their constant whining became unnerving. This book could have been a fantastic read by focusing on the hair raising escape and genocide of the Albanian people. Little of their suffering, starvation and suffering is known.
This read was very disappointing and the writer missed the mark by a thousand miles.