Wayland, April Halprin. 2002. Girl coming in for a landing. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Illustrated by Elaine Clayton. ISBN 9780375901584.
This is a story in poetry form about a school year in the life of a high school girl. This gem of a book turned into a delightful surprise for me.
The poetry is written in a free form, narrative style, some poems are very short and others longer. The illustrations provide an interesting and entertaining feel to the book. Since reading it, I have shown it to several high school girls and discussed the various topics that are addressed in it with them in small groups. They seem to be intrigued that a poetry book is telling a really good story about this young girl. They seem to be unfamiliar with this type of book. They said that the only poetry they read is what is in their textbooks, and they would never check out a book like that. It is true, that in our high school library, you can't always judge a book by its cover. This book has been on the shelf for a few years, but has rarely been checked out.
The poetry is rich in multiple meanings, but is simple enough to enjoy at face value. You really learn, remember, and sympathize with her over what it is like to be a high school girl. There are poems about peer pressure, first love, first kisses, hard classes and homework, family relationships, school dances, music lessons, friendships, and the ever crucial clothing choices.
The poet, April Halprin Wayland, states in the afterward, that this book is taken from her personal journals. She describes how she writes poetry and the kind of instruction that she was given from her teachers. She also tells that when she submitted her first poem for publication, she was rejected, and that she didn't submit anything else for fifteen years. She strongly recommends to young poets to learn from her mistakes, and to keep writing and writing about everything, and then try to publish if you want. Don't stop at a rejection, just keep revising and reworking. She gives lots of advice to young poets, along with a list of poetry websites listed on her personal website.
One of my favorite poems is pg. 77, "Driving That Dog Crazy"
When Mr. C teaches science, he tells us stories.
When he was a boy on his way to school, he'd tease a big, mean dog
by dragging a stick against her fence.
One day, dragging that stick tic-tic-tic,
driving that dog to a barking frenzy, he came to the gate
that was always closed but this day it stood
WIDE
OPEN.
Today Mr. C teaches us about
adrenaline.
I like this poem because it tells a story, reflecting the "school year" theme to the book, but there is also humor and creativeness in the poetry. Kids will be able to understand and relate to this short, but powerful episode in the life of a student. It is familiar and interesting, and stimulates discussion and thoughts easily.
I would love to use this as a book club book, with a group of girls. It would provide very stimulating conversation, as they either agreed or disagreed with some of the main character's thoughts and actions. As an extension to this, the girls could create a short (30 sec./free) Animoto book trailer, showing their thoughts or impressions of this poetry book. This would also help to stimulate further interest with other students.
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