Outcasts United

An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference

By: Warren St. John

Narrated by: Lincoln Hoppe

The extraordinary tale of a refugee youth soccer team and the transformation of a small American town

Clarkston, Georgia, was a typical Southern town until it was designated a refugee settlement center in the 1990s, becoming the first American home for scores of families in flight from the world’s war zones—from Liberia and Sudan to Iraq and Afghanistan. Suddenly Clarkston’s streets were filled with women wearing the hijab, the smells of cumin and curry, and kids of all colors playing soccer in any open space they could find. The town also became home to Luma Mufleh, an American-educated Jordanian woman who founded a youth soccer team to unify Clarkston’s refugee children and keep them off the streets. These kids named themselves the Fugees.

Set against the backdrop of an American town that without its consent had become a vast social experiment, Outcasts United follows a pivotal season in the life of the Fugees and their charismatic coach. Warren St. John documents the lives of a diverse group of young people as they miraculously coalesce into a band of brothers, while also drawing a fascinating portrait of a fading American town struggling to accommodate its new arrivals. At the center of the story is fiery Coach Luma, who relentlessly drives her players to success on the soccer field while holding together their lives—and the lives of their families—in the face of a series of daunting challenges.

This fast-paced chronicle of a single season is a complex and inspiring tale of a small town becoming a global community—and an account of the ingenious and complicated ways we create a home in a changing world.©2009 Spiegel and Grau; (P)2009 Random House

Critic reviews

"Not merely about soccer, St. John's book teaches readers about the social and economic difficulties of adapting to a new culture and the challenges facing a town with a new and disparate population. Despite their cultural and religious differences and the difficulty of adaptation, the Fugees came together to play soccer. This wonderful, poignant book is highly recommended..."
–Library Journal, starred review

A "richly detailed, uplifting account of a young Jordanian immigrant who created a soccer program in Georgia for young refugees from war-torn nations . . . educational and enriching."
– Kirkus Reviews

"St. John hits a trifecta . . . A fascinating and fast-moving account of big-picture politics, small-town sports, and some very memorable people."
–Booklist

"Inspiring...richly detailed...Deeply satisfying...a bighearted book."
–Shelf Awareness

"As St. John tells it, the Fugees’ story is something of a radical social experiment: a test case in 21st-century immigration and identity politics. But it’s also a deeply moving example of what men and women of goodwill can do."
–Very Short List

“A brilliant and empathetic depiction of our common quest for meaning and happiness. Warren St. John invites us into the lives of a community of refugees, their bewildered neighbors in a small town, and a Jordanian woman who not only coaches but also mentors, mothers, and inspires some remarkable boys, to create a heartwarming tale about the transformations that occur when our disparate lives connect.”
–Ishmael Beah, author of A Long Way Gone

“Truly unforgettable, Outcasts United offers a stirring lesson in the power of a single person to transform the lives of many. It’s an incisive window into the world ahead for all of us, where cultural diversity won’t be an ideal or a course requirement or a corporate initiative but a fact of life that has to be wrestled with and reconciled, if never quite resolved.”
–Reza Aslan, author of No God but God

Don't let the name full you

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It was an easy listen but not a fun story.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The coaches were not spared from showing their flaws in their personalities.

Which scene was your favorite?

The kids giving money for their trip

Did Outcasts United inspire you to do anything?

Be a standout in a crowd full of nay sayers

Building community

A great story about how the acts of kindness of one person can impact so many. Luma may not have changed the world but she changed what she could.

Great Story!

This story inspires me to help be the change I want to see in the world.

Wonderful!

This book is a artfully written text that incorporated everyone, not just soccer players or refugees, but seeps into the feeling everyone has had I being outside the crown, and the journey to find family in a new world. The story focuses on a town or resettled refugees in America and shows the difficulties and prejudices that must be traversed in the modern age. Like I have stated before it hones into the common feeling of wing displace and finding a family. I would recommend this book to college students, as a student myself I have just come into this challenge and this book has aided my odyssey. In addition it is a wonderful success story that draws you in quickly and compels you to keep reading, added bony is the movie coming out!!!

great book

i love this touching story. You can really feel the connection between the team in this book.