Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

 

Salutations and happy tidings to you and yours this holiday season! December's pick was Clap When You Land, by Elizabeth Avecedo, with Voices in the Stones by Kent Nerburn up next in January. The meeting format followed the hybrid model we've been employing recently of some in-person attendees and some dialing in from home via Zoom. We'll plan to continue this hybrid meeting format going forward, and as always, you are welcome to choose either avenue, but please be advised, masks will be required for anyone attending in person. See you in the new year!

 

To the book! 

 

Camino Rios lives for the summers when her father visits her in the Dominican Republic. But this time, on the day when his plane is supposed to land, Camino arrives at the airport to see crowds of crying people…

In New York City, Yahaira Rios is called to the principal’s office, where her mother is waiting to tell her that her father, her hero, has died in a plane crash.

Separated by distance—and Papi’s secrets—the two girls are forced to face a new reality in which their father is dead and their lives are forever altered. And then, when it seems like they’ve lost everything of their father, they learn of each other.

 

Clap When You Land offered us a novel-in-verse writing style that felt a lot like prose poetry. The majority of our members enjoyed this arrangement, and liked that it was a clear and straightforward read. Those few not in favor of this particular format, cited that it was distracting and seemed like it made the book longer than necessary. As a group, we liked the characters and found them, and the plot lines, believable (which is definitely not something we've been able to say for the last several books). It was said that Acevedo is skillful at writing about teenagers, and given this is a book from the Young Adult genre, we appreciated the complex and complicated people and circumstances the book incorporates. We thought it was good for young readers to get some subdued exposure to possible real life topics and concepts, such as a devoted and loving father who lives a double life. Along those lines, in the end, the story could have easily gone the way of anger, jealousy, and resentment between the two sisters~ but instead, their decision to love, support, and cleave to one another was commended. We especially liked the ending, and it was mentioned a few additional chapters at the end to see the girls off into their new lives would have been welcomed. 

 

What are your thoughts on composition and content of the book? Did you find it had a good balance, or did it lean too far one way or the other?

 

Did you love Clap When You Land? Fans of this book also enjoyed: Catherine's War, by Julia Billet, Seven Endless Forests, by April Genevieve Tucholke, and Children of Virtue and Vengeance, by Tomi Adeyemi. All of these titles are available in Viking~ reserve one today!

 

At the conclusion of every book club discussion we ask three questions and track the average answers:

Would we recommend this to another book club for discussion?
"YES"
Would we recommend this to a friend to read? 
"YES"
Rate the book 1-5 stars, with 1 being the lowest rating: 
 4 stars