Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo – Book review

Hello lovelies!

It’s been a while since my last review. This book was a nice surprise because I’m not a fan of books written in verse, which is surprising because I love poetry. However from the praise this book has received I knew it would have been stupid to miss the opportunity of reading a gripping and necessary story.

Title: Clap When You Land

Author: Elizabeth Acevedo

Summary (Goodreads):

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. In a dual narrative novel in verse that brims with both grief and love, award-winning and bestselling author Elizabeth Acevedo writes about the devastation of loss, the difficulty of forgiveness, and the bittersweet bonds that shape our lives.

• Aphrodite: 4 stars
• Medusa: Sexual assault
• Iris: Sapphic relationship
• Athena: BIPOC
• Pheme: Hyped book

This novel is one of the most beautiful things I have read in a while – if not ever.

It was raw, sharp and honest. Each word was chosen carefully and beautifully and I was mad at myself for reading it so quickly. I was a little scared of the way grief would be painted but it exceeded anything I expected (in a good way). I didn’t let myself feel for the characters because I’m very selfish and I couldn’t fathom the idea of losing a loved one even if it has already happened to me but it wasn’t a parent. I didn’t even want to put myself into that mindset because it would be too painful to go through(as inevitable as it is). It was even more heartbreaking knowing that the plane crash was based off real life events. The author conveyed perfectly how grief is in the little things.

“The body is a funny piece of meat. How it inflates and deflates in order to keep you alive. But how simple words can fill you up or pierce the air out of you.”

Characters

Oh how I loved their blooming and blossoming sisterhood between Yahaira and Camino. This was a story about love but not with big declarations but through everyone’s different love language. How we care in our own way for those we love. Love is hard to explain and it is better shown than said (in my option) and the author managed to convey that flawlessly. I also appreciated how sensitive subjects were tackled. I really felt for the characters when sexual assault was mentioned and it can be triggering because of the the way it was told. Women are still subject to so many hardships and I really hope and pray for a better world where young girls won’t have to be subjected to predators. I really liked the attention to detail and the overall kindness (italique) of the characters. It was a wonderful and necessary book which I cannot recommended enough.