Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

 

This novel in verse is a dual narrative that tells a unique story of two sisters growing up estranged from one another. One sister, Camino, lives in the Dominican Republic and the other, Yahaira, lives in New York City. Their whole lives their mother was a constant figure, but their father was always going on trips for business. Only later do they find out the real reason, which happens to be just after he tragically dies in a plane crash. An impossible situation arises where the daughters are forced to figure out who there father really was, who their estranged families are, and how to navigate these new relationships, all in the wake of their father’s untimely death. 

Book Information                                                                                                Awards and Recognition

• Title: Clap When You Land                                                                       • NAACP Image Award Nominee

• Author: Elizabeth Acevedo                                            • Goodreads Choice Award Winner for YA Fiction

• Genre: Contemporary YA Fiction                                                                    • New York Times Bestseller

• Published in 2020                                                      • “Best Books of the Year” by NPR, Time, and Kirkus

• Pages: 432                                                                                •Selected for National Book Award Longlist

Why this book? 

I had previously read The Poet X, my first experience with novel in verse, and found it captivating! The style create a more intense connection with events of the page and the feelings of the main character. So, I had to give it another go! I wanted to see how Elizabeth Acevedo continues to excel in this genre through the emotional depth, full-bodied flavor, and vivid, immersive details.

Teaching and Content Considerations

• Great for whole class instruction within a Highschool classroom due to its emotional depth, unique style, and cultural relevance. 

• For creative writing students, or those interested in the arts, this book could be an inspiration and entry point to long form poetry. 

• Some content may be more difficult to stomach. Within this text there are passages that include death, grief, infidelity, sexual harassment and predation. The author is exceptional at covering these topics, but some content-warning is advised. 

Instructional Ideas

• Thematic instruction around the themes of grief and loss, sisterhood/family, and hidden dual lives.

• Literacy technique instruction centered around creating dual narratives, using the novel-in-verse style, and creating emotional depth within a story and its characters. 

Potential Read Aloud Passages

• Pages 31 - 33: Camino grapples with the dangers of the world as a young girl, desiring the protection and guidance from her father. She also explains how the Dominican Republic can be limiting for women and fears she won’t be able to live out her dreams. 

• Pages 98 - 102: This sections shows Camino reflecting on past experiences with her father while she holds on to hope that he had survived the crash. Throughout this section she finds out that there were no survivors. 

• These two passages reflect just how raw and emotional this text can be, with real life problems weighing heavy on these two young girls hearts and minds. 

Overall Thoughts

• Clap When You Land was an emotional journey that never quite lets you take a breath. There is a constant hum of grief and sadness that frequently dips into vicarious sorrow, fear, or anger. The emotional depth to this story is captivating and made me want to keep reading until Camino, Yahaira and their families got some closure; so I could get my own. This story is fantastically enthralling. 

Further Exploration or Reading

• After reading this, I would like to look into other authors in the same style. Acevedo has done well to make a great impression on me regarding this literary style, so I want to explore more authors! Other authors will bring different stories that could offer new, complex, and exciting reading experiences.