In a novel-in-verse that brims with grief and love, National Book Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Acevedo writes about the devastation of loss, the difficulty of forgiveness, and the bittersweet bonds that shape our lives.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 … 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.
Great for summer reading or anytime! Clap When You Land is a Today show pick for “25 children’s books your kids and teens won’t be able to put down this summer!”
Plus don’t miss Elizabeth Acevedo’s The Poet X and With the Fire on High!
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Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo is such a moving story about grief, family, and so much more. I have never read a novel-in-verse before and I have to say I really enjoyed it.
I listened to the audiobook and the narrators were the author as Yahaira and Melania-Luisa Marte as Camino. I loved all the culture in the book and the fact that we had both viewpoints. I thought the Dominican Republic really came to life through Camino’s viewpoint, and both narrations were simply beautiful. This was my first time reading a book by Acevedo and it will definitely not be my last. Her writing style is enchanting, and it delivers such a punch to the gut. I was never a huge fan of poetry, but mixed with story I apparently love it! At least from this author.
I haven’t read much Young Adult lately, but Clap When You Land is a perfect example of an important novel that can be read by both younger people and adults alike. The story this book told was moving, enlightening, and really makes you think about relationships. It was also nice to read a book with a queer storyline. I don’t read enough of them and it makes me happy. I was hoping it would be a bit more emotional for me which is why I rated it a 4 instead of 5, but I would still consider this a must read and I can’t wait to read more from Acevedo.
This is one of the best books
Loved everything about this story of sisters dealing with grief and forgiveness.
I love books written in verse. This was beautifully written
A girl in NYC and one in the Dominican Republic find out they’re half sisters when their father dies.
Based on an actual event, Clap When You Land is a thought-provoking story of two girls who have so many stark contrasts between them yet so many similarities at the same time. They must navigate the gaping hole left by a father’s death.
I enjoyed the complexity of all the characters, particularly the father. This book challenges you to consider what you would do if you were in the father’s position and how family and friends should view his legacy.
This novel-in-verse, with its lyrical flow, was a perfect book to listen to. Narrators Elizabeth Acevedo and Melania-Luisa Marte do an excellent job of bringing Camino and Yahaira to life. They made the grief and feelings of betrayal felt by both girls palpable.
I loved this story so much. The tragic death of the main character’s father reveals secrets that will change her life forever. The author weaves a bittersweet tale of grief and love and family that left me laughing, crying, and nodding my head in total agreement as I watched the characters conquer challenge after challenge in totally relatable ways.
A page turner in the sense that you become invested in the story and the characters and want to find out how the story progresses. Writing style intrigued me and I found it very easy to read.
We’re only 4 days into 2021, but I’m already certain this will be on my top-5 list for the year. Beautifully written in a poetic style, the storyline is simple but exceptionally moving. I loved the characters and settings and am looking forward to reading this again.
This was a beautiful story told in verse and in two POVs that were incredibly distinct. I loved the characters, all their flaws and how their lives were interwoven. But I sometimes felt things happened a little too slowly, or that the pacing was just a bit off.
Clap When You Land
Trigger Warning: Harassment and sexual assault
3.75 stars
This book follows the point of view of two sisters who didn’t know about each other’s existence until a tragedy has strike them when their father had died in an airplane crash. It is an exploration of grief and coming into terms with and so much more.
I had an experience with this particular book which I didn’t experience in her other two books. I read it ebook wise and I wasn’t getting into it at all. I felt that both sisters had the same voice and had a hard time distinguishing them both and was almost going to DNF it.
I wanted to like it because Elizabeth Acevedo is one of my all time favorite authors so instead of giving it up, I decided to try the audiobook which is also narrated by her and it was the best decision I have ever made. If you weren’t getting into the book, try the audiobook because it enhances the experience and you get to enjoy both of the sister’s perspectives.
While I did love following both sisters, I loved following Camino’s (the girl on the right) perspective more. There was so much going on with her that made the story compelling and I was at times engaged and horrified for what she had to go through. She is the type of person who doesn’t deal with emotions very well and is angry which I related a lot from her.
The other sister, Yahaira (the girl on the left) is the opposite of Camino. She can control her emotions and bottle it up. She is more composed and deals everything strategically. She is basically the mother figure of both sisters despite her being the younger daughter. She also is a rebel and she does anything to do what she thinks is right which is admirable.
The author did a great job in distinguishing each of the sister’s voices and I loved following both of their journey in discovering each other, dealing with their grief, forgiving their father, themselves and each other, in addition to overcoming their traumas.
The book mostly focuses on grief so it makes sense for me to discuss this first. Grief can be interpreted in many ways and the author did a great job with this topic. I related to their struggles and the language that Elizabeth used to describe it made me emotional because of how on point and beautiful it was carried within the text.
Of course the grief in this book is about their father and on how he is not what he seemed to be. After his death, secrets are revealed and it is too much for both sisters and it gives the question on how to deal with what has been revealed. Family is not perfect. It can be messy and this book gives that raw message perfectly.
Forgiveness is part of the story (although not a huge one but I think it should be mentioned). Forgiving in this situation is not easy on both sisters (especially in Camino’s situation) and I loved how slowly everything played out in the end in regards to that.
Finally, the second big thing that this book deals with is stalkers and the sexual harassment that both sisters had went through.
Camino constantly gets watched by this stalker and the worst thing is that he isn’t a stranger. He constantly follows her everywhere and every time he is in a scene, I just want to rip his guts open and leave my baby girl alone!!! I’m not gonna say more because spoilers but I’m glad with how everything plays out.
On Yahaira’s case, what happened in the train station wanted to make me punch and torture the guy who dared touch her. I was disgusted and my heart ached for what she had to go through and how it never has been resolved. It left a bitter taste in my mouth but that was the purpose because as much as I hate to admit it, some cases never gets resolved.
One of my favorite parts about this book is the female empowerment in it. Despite the tragedy and the struggle with grief and forgiveness, there wasn’t a shred of cattiness or female hating female in it. I loved how each of them have their back toward one another and especially towards the end of the book. I was internally screaming YES YES YES!!!!
The female friendship is also one of the highlights of the story. I love the close sisterhood friendship between Camino and her pregnant best friend in school (I can’t remember her name as I’m writing this review). It was so heartwarming how each of them have each other’s back.
I also love the relationship between her and her aunt (on her mother’s side). It was just so sweet and I love how they are both healers and how it impacts a lot of lives in a very positive way.
And of course, I love how the relationship between the two sisters flourished when they discovered each other. It was realistic and not over the top which I was very happy while reading.
The ending was full of hope and marked an end to a past life for them both and open a beginning to a new journey.
Clap When You Land is immersing. You will find yourself floating beside Elizabeth Acevedo’s beautiful verse. But not everything is perfect. You will find yourself mourning with Camino and Yahaira as they grieve about the death of their father. I also really like that Yahaira is a lesbian, it gives another perspective, besides, Dre is one of my favorite characters. I DEFINITELY recommend this ode to the Dominican Republic.
This is the story of two sisters who knew nothing of each other. Yahaira who grew up in New York City with her mother and father. And Camino who grew up in the Dominican Republic with an aunt and a father who visits in the summers. Camino is at the airport to meet her father when she finds out that his plane has crashed. Yahaira is told the same truth about her father’s death when she is pulled from her classroom and taken home. The girls start to recolect on who their Papi was and soon discover each other. Camino – more excited about the idea of having another relative than Yahaira is – reaches out to her on facebook to see if there is a chance they can get to know each other. Yahaira decides that when her father’s wishes to be buried in the Domincan Republic are granted, she would fly to be with him there and meet this long lost sister.
This was an okay book. It has a large amount of 5 star reviews and I can see their reasons. For me, I listened to it, and I think that might have been the problem. The language of the book was okay, the story intriguing, but the way it was read was very choppy. It is written almost in a poetry form, and so when it is read outloud, to me it was hard to develop feelings for the characters. It is a personal thing more than about the book in general. My thoughts would be to get the print copy and try it that way. The relationship that forms between the sisters is the best part of this book, but overall – it was just….fine.
This book leaves me conflicted.
You know when you read a book that breaks you in the best way possible while positively portraying ways of life you fundamentally disagree with?
I don’t know what to say.
Other than this, I am in love with Acevedo’s writing style.
Maybe it is that simple.
I can hope.
This was super entertaining and easy to listen to. The way it’s narrated was like poetry and the writing itself was like poetry as well – very moving and beautiful. So good, and for me it just got better as it went on.
Wow. Just, wow.
I was super intimidated by the book–I had never read one in verse before. That combined with it being quite serious/sad (not something I tend to read) and being YA and the ginormous amounts of hype, I was super worried I would struggle with this book.
But it was amazing. I breezed through it in a few hours–the verse is very easy to read (that FLOW) and makes the book briefer than its thick spine lets on. I would love to hear this on audio, because it had a very spoken word feel to it (or at least, that’s how it sounded in my hear). The story of two girls who share a father, only discovering each other after his plane goes down flying from one to the other, it’s very moving. While much of the book is heartbreaking, it’s overall quite uplifting, with a great showing of familial bond, female strength, and overcoming adversity.
Also great to see Dominican culture represented in multiple different ways–New York Dominican life in the U.S. and then also in the DR. And, one of the main characters is LGBTQ+, and her girlfriend features prominently. So lots of great representation in this YA read.
Highly recommend this book, even if it’s a step outside your comfort zone–it was for me.
4.5 Stars
I don’t know if it’s just good luck on my part or what, but I seem to have good luck with books written in verse. This style might not be for everyone but I feel like this book hit harder by being written in that style. The audiobook was out of this world and it has certainly encouraged me to pick up this author’s other work, especially the one in verse.
TW: death of a parent, plane crashes, stalking, sexual assault
Two different worlds, brought together by one man. One man who kept one world a secret from the other. A devastating plane crash brings secrets from dark to light and the two worlds collide.
What a great read. It hurts the heart, brings tears to the surface and is filled with such emotion you’d have to be dead to feel nothing.
Elizabeth Acevedo is an amazing writer and is an auto-buy from now on. I love reading poetry. I love reading stories. She brings the two together in an engaging and beautiful way.
Clap When You Land pulled me in from page one. Told in verse, it’s the story of two sisters who only learn about each other after the death of their father in a plane crash, it’s about grief, love and family.
I totally recommend this book! it’s so good. To all viewers read it!