Silence, cunning, exile

THE Penguin Book of Migration Literature, edited by Dohra Ahmad, is the first anthology of its kind. It contains poems, short stories and novel excerpts from people who have left their homeland to sink new roots in another land. Such a diaspora (from the biblical "scattering of seeds") and migration characterize much of life in the 20th century onwards. And such movement, which involves leaving behind family, community and country, can cause psychic and emotional trauma for many people.

Every year, millions of people move to a new country.