The brothers, each in their own form of exile, meet up again in Istanbul, where Omar plans to hire a smuggler to sneak them into Europe. Aikins says he will follow Omar in whatever manner Omar chooses, even if that means crossing in the one way so many refugees already have and continue to today: as boat people.

The Naked Don't Fear the Water: An Underground Journey with Afghan Refugees” by Matthieu Aikins is exceptionally well-written, factual and informative with a fluid narrative that paints a realistic portrait of the peril fraught journey refugees and asylum seekers are compelled to undertake for a life of freedom and liberty that they are denied in their home country. The author discusses in much detail the places and people he encounters through his journey- the smugglers, the migrants and the activists and welfare groups. We also get to know more about Omar’s family and Maryam, Omar’s mother, a high school teacher, who will do everything in her power to keep her family safe.For its dedication to documenting such desperate journeys, shining a light on conditions for migrants, The Naked Don’t Fear the Water is an incredible achievement.’ In 2016, a young Afghan driver and translator named Omar makes the heart-wrenching choice to flee his war-torncountry, saying goodbye to Laila, the love of his life, without knowing when they might be reunited again. He is one of themillions of refugees who leave their homes that year. Quality of life means more than just consumption”: Two MIT economists urge that a smarter, more politically aware economics be brought to bear on social issues. DAVIES: You know, you spent so much time with refugees both, you know, in Turkey, trying to get to Lesbos - in Lesbos, trying to get to Athens - and Athens. You know, one of the things that this journey gave you was an intimate look at refugees, which most of us never see. I mean, even reporters who come and interview people, it's often in a circumstance where they're not able to be candid. You simply had lots and lots of frank conversations. You certainly got to know Omar's family very well. I'm wondering what you saw that surprised you that would surprise other people about these people fleeing for a new life.

DAVIES: You know, when you were on the smugglers' roads, one of the things you said was, like, if you were known to be a Westerner, there was a risk of being kidnapped and being held for ransom. Did you have that fear in this period, when the Afghan government had collapsed and the Taliban were taking over? Some reporters can’t help telling you their latest tale of derring-do: “I was there. And it was hell!” I’d infrequently run into Aikins somewhere, but the Canadian journalist would never say much about what he had just done or where he was headed. Then my next issue of Harper’s would arrive, and I’d see “ On the Front Lines in the World’s Deadliest Megacity” above his name. In this extraordinary book, an acclaimed young war reporter chronicles a dangerous journey on the smuggler’s road to Europe, accompanying his friend, an Afghan refugee, in search of a better future.

DAVIES: He said, this is not what we paid for. And he saw a weapon and said, you're going now. So that's - you got into this little boat. AIKINS: Well, it was the Taliban who were going to kidnap you beforehand a lot of times. And now that they were the government and supposedly claimed to want to protect foreign journalists and NGO workers because they wanted to portray themselves as a responsible authority, there was actually less threat of kidnapping in the beginning, at least. We were more worried about ISIS, who might want to kill a foreigner, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. There was a lot of shooting around the airport. AIKINS: Well, we were about 40 people. We were taken to the beach at night. Omar's forced to get down at gunpoint because he was angry we were going the wrong island. And then...

DAVIES: Right. And we've heard a lot about Afghan refugees in recent months. This was, you know, five years before the American withdrawal - 2016. Why did he want to leave? This is a beautifully written tale that features danger, uncertainty, fear, hunger, desperation, and isolation. Readers will be alternately fascinated and horrified by the life-or-death decisions that refugees make with limited information about where and how to move next. DAVIES: Yeah. What were the opportunities? What were the options there for spiriting your way onto the ferry boat? The Naked Don't Fear the Water has got to be one of the most heartwrenching books that I've ever read (right after The Kite Runner & A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini). Really?” says Sharif. “I’m from Wazirabad and I know everybody there. How come I’ve never met you?”So, rating this is hard. It was a well written book that lifts up the refugee journey for new audiences, but it had some problems as well. No one knew how long the miracle would last. Thousands of people were landing each day now in the little boats. A million would pass into Europe. Felix Torres on Law firms are throwing legal spaghetti at the wall to take down gen-AI, but judges are so far unimpressed DAVIES: And you had a lot of conversations with other refugees because everybody was trying to accomplish this same thing. Did you know people who tried that and they succeed?