Clap When You Land By Elizabeth Acevedo
Rating: 4.5 Stars
‘When bad news is coming, the saints will warn you.’
Synopsis
Camino is a teenager who lives in the Dominican Republic with her Aunt. She’s a strikingly beautiful young lady with aspirations to become a doctor in order to make life easier for her and her family. Yahaira is a teenager who lives in New York with her mother. She loves reading fashion blogs, rarely breaks rules, and is quite the accomplished chess player.
On the 5th day in June, Yaharia and Camino’s father boards flight 1112 from JFK to the DR only to never reach his destination. Apart from dealing with their grief surrounded by his death, the girls learn of the other’s existence and grapple with understanding the man the each referred to as their father and his secrets he kept from each of them.
What I Liked
The purpose of this story was to pay respects to 260 passengers and crew members who lost their lives on doomed Flight 587 that departed from JFK for the Las Américas International Airport in Santa Domingo, or the capital of Dominican Republic, only two months after the events that took place on September 11, 2001.
What I Didn’t Like
This was a heartbreaking story, but the writing and development of the main characters, their family, and loved ones was absolutely beautiful. The depiction of resiliency, compassion, and strength shown by way of Latina teenagers is very refreshing and (frankly) needed. I can’t wait to read more of Elizabeth Acevedo’s work.
Overall
I’m excited to see an adaptation of this story brought to the small screen, but just know, you’re going to want to read the book first. Have you read this yet? Let me know your thoughts in the comments!
