After much struggle and even running away from home, Nidali receives permission from her Mama and Baba to attend college in Boston.

Nidali admits to her aspirations of becoming a writer and submits an application to a college in Boston. She continues battling with her Baba as well. Here, Nidali attends a public high school, and takes interest in a boy named Omar Medina. In America, Nidali navigates life as an American learning customs, practices, holidays, and more. Nidali is forced to transition from Eastern to Western culture quickly. Soon after, Nidali, Mama, and her brother, Gamal, arrive in America. Baba flies to Texas first and establishes a mobile home. After searching, he is chosen for a job in Texas as an architect.

After spending time in Egypt, Nidali's father, Baba, declares he will find a job in the United States. Throughout the book, Nidali navigates public affection and sexual experiences under the strict Arab law, as well as exploring masturbation. The couple is most often depicted riding bikes and finding secret spots for their first sexual experience together. This is where her relationship with her boyfriend Fakhr flourishes. In Egypt, Nidali is sent to live with her sick grandparent, giving her more freedom, being away from her father. The family then travels by car to Egypt and settles into their summer home for safety. On her 13th birthday, bombs begin to go off, and Nidali's birthday goes unremembered. However, her family is forced to flee to Egypt in 1990 when Saddam Hussein conducts the Iraqi Invasion. From the beginning, her life struggle is foreshadowed when she is given the name Nidali, the feminine version of 'Nidal', which means 'strife' or 'struggle'. Nidali is born in Boston to a Palestinian father (Baba) and Egyptian mother (Mama) and acquires an American passport. Although Nidali is battling war and strife, she is also subject to battle with her Palestinian father who has specific expectations and strict rules for his daughter throughout the novel. The story is set upon a backdrop of ethnic division, politics, war, culture, and the looming theme of 'home'. Coming from a mixed background and moving so frequently, Nidali is always aware of her difference. Nidali's story is narrated in first person. A Map of Home discusses the Gulf War, warfare and bombings, the invasion of Kuwait, and more political and social turmoil. The author, Randa Jarrar, grew up in Kuwait and Egypt, moving to America soon after the Gulf War This story is loosely autobiographical. This forces the family to flee to Kuwait. There is political, cultural, and social turmoil throughout Kuwait, when eventually Saddam Hussein invades Kuwait in 1990. The story is first set in Kuwait, then Egypt, and ends in Texas. A Map of Home is set in Palestinian-Israeli conflict, specifically during the Gulf War.

A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar