I am a first-year student taking Italian 101 with the goal of becoming fluent in the language to allow me to speak with my family in Italy. I was fortunate enough to be presented with the opportunity to deepen my understanding of the Italian and Somalian cultures through engaging with the work of Igiaba Scego. She came to Duke to present a live reading of a portion of her new book entitled “La mia casa è dove sono”, followed by a Q&A session with students of Italian. It was both fascinating and awe-inspiring to hear her read from the book in Italian, and to process her thoughtful responses to the variety of questions asked by my peers. It is not every day you get to hear from and speak directly with such a distinguished, incredible author and person. I was even able to talk with her one-on-one following the event. I was truly encouraged by her explanation of how she has faced adversity and discrimination in her life by leaning into her strong character and engaging with literature. I greatly admired the way she described herself as a “happy person” despite the challenges she has been presented with. I also loved her explanation that she does not use her writing as an escape from reality, but as an outlet through which she can channel her emotions into something beautiful.