The Last Nomad is a cultural gem. Living in Somalia as a child, Shugri Said Salh writes about her family life as a nomad with her ayeeyo (grandmother). She also writes about her family relationships: father, mother, sisters, brothers. Life wasn’t totally as a nomad, especially when she lived with her father and attended school in a small village.

There were so many things I enjoyed about her family life…the camels, the neutering of the goats, the strong will of Shugri Sahl’s ayeeyo, the children feeling secure with the basics of food, water and being cared for. There were moments that weren’t acceptable for her young life…fear of being raped, physical punishment by her father, female genital mutilation.

The most important event for the author happens in her teens, when she escapes Somalia and Kenya and flees to Canada. The constant fear during the Somalian War is finally erased after her immigration. Following relocation to life in California, the author realized the amazing contrast between her life as an adult in America and as a child in Somalia.

Forever, I will think of this book every time I see a freight train. But the more important theme is the way the author was treated by her parents when she was a child.

I have questions, many questions. How could her mother ever have custody of Carrot Quinn and her brother Jordan? Why does this family have snow boots, snow pants, a sewing machine and a glue gun, but nothing to eat? How many other children in America are as neglected as these children? Can some memoirs be embellished? Isn’t it wonderful that Carrot Quinn can write such an intriguing Memoir? She uses so many wonderful metaphors!

The Sunset Route publishes this week- July 6th. I think it’s right up there with Educated as an eye-opening memoir. Thanks to BookBrowse for giving this book to me. It’s a gem of a memoir!