If you are planning to move to another country, it might be time to catch up on your reading about your new home. You do not want to travel to a foreign country with a blindfold over your eyes, thinking you will take the environment and cultural changes in stride.
The Only Few Expats Books Really Worth Reading
One thing that most experienced expats have learned is that visiting another country has its challenges, and if they had the right information, adjusting to the changes would not have been as difficult as it proved to be. Expats, moving now, have the advantage to educate themselves from the experiences of those who traveled the same road before them.
In the collection of the books mentioned in this article, note that all of them are written by expats about their time abroad. From the hundreds out there, here are books that are worth reading:
1. Retirement Without Borders: How to Retire Abroad by Barry Golson
Barry Golson with his wife Thia has resided in six different countries. In his book, Golson offers expats wanting to retire abroad with a how-to guide, covering important issues that plague the newly retired. The guide covers issues such as finances, real estate, immigration, health care, immigration, and taxes in detail.
2. Expatriate Entrepreneur by Jo Parfitt
Jo Parfitt does not only share her experience about living and working in another country, but also has compiled a list of over twenty expats who have contributed to the book, informing readers about their experiences.
The book, which is aimed at entrepreneurs, includes a list of profitable business ventures abroad, networking with people, and lists resources to seek out in the world’s 35 most renowned expat countries that can assist expats to establish a successful business.
3. Club Expat: A Teenager’s Guide to Moving Overseas by Aniket Shah and Akash Shah
Aniket and Akash Shah are two teenagers that wrote a book from the perspective of teenagers going to an unknown country to reside abroad with their families. Having lived in Asia and Europe, they serve as a voice for teens that might be in the process of making a transition to another country.
The book does not contain only their experiences, but the stories of expat teenagers that have lived in another country, and have had majority of their schooling there. In the book, young adults will find a range of issues discussed such as the complications of living abroad, culture shock, and more.
4. Expat Women: Confessions by Andrea Martins and Victoria Hepworth
Andrea Martins and Victoria Hepworth know firsthand how it is like to live, work, and interact with locals of another country. In their book, they teach expats to manage their career and money, raise kids, rebuild their identity, deal with relationship changes, parent bilingual children, create a balance between work and home, and more. For expat women, this book serves as the perfect guide to maintaining a successful and healthy lifestyle abroad.
5. The Kids’ Guide to Living Abroad by Martine Zoer
Children of expat families that are nervous and not keen on the idea of leaving their home country for another would greatly benefit from reading Martine Zoer’s book. The author interviewed several children living abroad about how they felt when their parent’s broke the news to them.
The emotions they felt at the time of moving and once getting there are detailed in the book. Through this book, children will learn how to deal with the surge of emotions that creep up at the thought of leaving everything behind for a foreign land. They may be better able to cope with the move after reading the book.
6. GenXpat: The Young Professional’s Guide to Making a Successful Life Abroad by Margaret Malewski
Margaret Malewski’s book targets young professional that are planning to pursue their careers abroad. From the book, young professionals will learn about different careers requiring them to move to more than one country through the course of their career.
The book contains answers to tough questions that arise amongst young expat professionals such as how to build a social network, how to optimize contracts, how to settle down, how to return home, and how to embrace another country’s culture.
7. Expat Book Review: The Global Nomad’s Guide to University Transition by Tina Quick
Tina Quick addresses the transition of expat children who have lived their entire life in an expat country, but for higher schooling, want to return to their home country. Upon returning to their home country, they will be out of touch with the country’s culture and people. The book will take expat children, returning to their own country, through stages of lifestyle adjustment.
In addition to the stages, the book also covers important aspects of growing up such as the temptation to partake in drinking and doing illegal substances. Apart from that, the book includes experiences of expats who found it difficult to transition back to their home country.
8. Turning Points: 25 inspiring stories from women entrepreneurs who have turned their careers and their lives around edited by Kate Cobb
Kate Cobb, an expat herself, asked twenty-five women to share their stories about how they established themselves as strong-minded career women in a country that was not their own. The twenty-five women that have contributed to the book have gone onto launch their own businesses.
Each woman is of a different background, living in different expat nations. Through their own personal narrative, they chronicle their journey from the beginning to the present. Other women can use these women’s struggle to make a path for themselves in a foreign country as a source of inspiration. For this reason, even the author has shared her success story as a woman entrepreneur abroad.
9. Expat Book Review: Emotional Resilience and The Expat Child by Julia Simens
Julia Simens is a family therapist with vast experience of working with expat families. She has resided in five continents, moved seven times, and raised two expat children. Her book focuses on the challenges an eight-year-old child living or moving to another country might encounter. She teaches parents how to talk to their children, providing them information in the form of case studies and guides.
If you have scheduled a move to another country, grab one of the aforementioned books to read on the plane.
I am a traveler. I have seen lots of places – from exotic Asia to sophisticated Europe! What makes me appreciate every place the most are the warm people who welcome me – and their willingness to show their culture and tradition! Most of the events I really love, involve feasts and celebrations – each country, each ethnic group has a unique way of celebrating nature, and each has unique tradition – which is such a magnificent scene to watch. Truly, there is a lot to learn in the world – a lot of things to explore, and the journey never ends, well, at least for me ☺
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