Asylumfeatures interviews with sixteen Canadian refugees from around the world. The interviews are shaped into a five-act play in the likeness of Shakespeare's
A Midsummer Night's Dreamto address poignant questions about what is true, what is real. Philosophers, artists, and politicians take the stage alongside the refugees to highlight stories of war, displacement, and being other.
"Asylumis an enlightening read that challenges us to examine our beliefs about those who are other. Laura has worked with refugees and immigrants in Canada, Asia, and the Middle East for over two decades, and inAsylum, she invites us to walk with her through the pain, the challenges, and the joys of working with displaced people." — Stella Harvey, author ofThe Brink of Freedomand director of the Whistler Writers Festival.
"I enjoy Laura's writing. It is very fluent—and moving." — Robert Lacey, biographer, historian, and author of Gulf CharitiesandIslamic Philanthropy and Arabia: In Search of the Golden Ages
Laura Swart has taught academic writing to post-secondary students for over twenty years, encouraging them to find and raise their writing voices. As a novelist and playwright, she was shortlisted for the 2018 ReLit Award. She lives in Calgary.
![Asylum/Ransomed: Breaking the Fourth Wall [Paperback]](/itemImage/2/5/9/0/2_6846191.jpg "Asylum/Ransomed: Breaking the Fourth Wall [Paperback]")