Module #9 Poetry

Title: Split Image : A Story in Poems

Citation:

Glenn, M. (2000). Split image : A story in poems. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

Summary:

Split Image is the story of a Vietnamese high school girl who dreams of going to college is expected to stay home and care for her disabled older brother. The book is filled with the voices of the people who interact with her and their perceptions of her plus her own thoughts and those of here family. The disconnect between the various perceptions is very clear. Her anger and disappointment are so great that she begins to act out causing peoples perceptions of her to change. We don't know a lot of details about each speaker, but we understand enough to get a sense of who they are and what their lives are like.

Review:

“……Mel Glenn is another pioneer of this style of storytelling. He started his career writing poetry collections like Class Dismissed! (1982; o.p.), Back to Class (1988; o.p.), and My Friend's Got This Problem, Mr. Candler (1991, all Clarion), in which poems are connected by common settings or themes, but not closely enough to categorize them as novels. Who Killed Mr. Chippendale? A Mystery in Poems (1996) was the first of five novels in verse Glenn wrote that are set in or related to the fictitious Tower High School. Writing in free verse, Glenn uses an array of voices to tell the story of Robert Chippendale, a teacher shot to death at the beginning of the school day. Glenn followed that title with The Taking of Room 114: A Hostage Drama in Poems (1997), the suspenseful story of a teacher who holds his senior history class hostage at gunpoint. Jump Ball: A Basketball Season in Poems (1997, all Lodestar) tells the story of how the Tower High Tigers are having the best season ever when tragedy strikes. An interracial romance and murder are the subjects of Foreign Exchange: A Mystery in Poems (Morrow, 1999), an outstanding story about prejudice. In Glenn's most recent novel in verse, Split Image: A Story in Poems (HarperCollins, 2000), Tower High School student Laura Li commits suicide in the library, and the people who knew her try to understand why. The author's use of multiple perspectives to tell his stories would not work with prose. Verse gives authenticity and distinction to the individual voices.”

Review Source:

(Paragraph taken from  SLJ article)

Sullivan, E. (2003, August 1). Fiction or Poetry? School Library Journal.

Impressions:

The lack of too many words or details makes this a very powerful book. It cuts right to the heart of the matter without cluttering the story with too much character development.  The reader gets a glimpse into Laura Li’s life through the eyes of a variety of people she interacts with making this a very interesting book.

Suggested Use(s):

Additional Information:

Awards: YALSA Best Books for Young Adults: 2001

             Notable/Best Books (A.L.A.) 01/19/01

Interest Level: Gr 7-12/YA