Split+Image

Mel Glenn 153. Harper Tempest. $6.99.
 * //Split//** **//Image//**

In Poems
By Claire Liu On the surface, Laura Li is Tower High School’s smart, popular, “drop-dead-gorgeous China doll.” But no one really knows her- no one’s ever been to her house, or learned her parents names. In the book //Split Image//, Mel Glenn skill fully uses only poems as a medium to tell a story: after moving to America from China, Laura’s father has been constantly away on business, and Laura must care for her mentally ill brother. She watches opportunity fly away with increasing frustration. When her mother says she can only attend a college nearby, so she can continue to “take care of responsibility,” she writes “Little teakettle/poised on your high shelf/Wait until you gather your own steam/ and watch as I boil over.” Many important themes are woven into this book, written by over a dozen characters, each with their own voice and writing style. A rich variety of tones and style are introduced as Glenn reflects on young adults in their senior year of high school. The earlier quotation reflects Laura’s emotional, philosophical voice. Besides Laura Li, the other characters speak their minds in a casual, recognizable tone that sounds like they’re speaking to the reader: one writes, “My mother can say anything she wants/ But I’m not going to listen to her, or God; it’s my life” and another, “He wants me to go join the marines…/I don’t wanna be part of/ the few, the proud, the brave/ If I go to basic training/ I’m gonna be part of/ The many, the broken, the ugly.” Throughout the book, the poetic voices urge the reader to think about themes like Chinese and American culture, night life and school, and primarily, finding oneself against whatever one’s parents might wish for. An interesting aspect of the book is that the setting of most of the action is the school library. It allows the author to post a pro-library, pro-book opinion by making it the sanctuary for students and teachers in the story. It is in the library that Laura works and from there becomes knowledgeable to most of the other characters’ problems. The librarian, Sarah Binder, becomes close to her, and Laura writes, “Mr. Binder is like a mother to me/ I wish my own mother were more/ Like a mother to me.” This is ironic because Ms. Binder treats Laura like she wishes she had treated her own daughter, whom she is now often at odds with. The library is also the setting of the thought-provoking final climax of the story, which drastically opens the eyes of several characters. The author of //Split Image//, Mel Glenn, is a former English teacher, now 65, who published his first book, also comprised of poems, in 1980. It was called //Class Dismissed! High School Poems//, and won the Society of Children’s Book Writers Golden Kite Award, and was also named ALA Best of the Best Books 1970-1982, Between then and //Split Image//, he has written several other popular young adult books using poetry. Glenn’s poetic recognition and experience with the young adult genre has named this book and ALA Best Book for Young Adults. Like Glenn’s other books, this book is written for high school students because they can best connect to the setting and the characters. Because the story is carried in poetry, there are fewer words to read than a traditional book. However, the amount of information and food for thought that can come from //Split Image// can be much greater than a traditional book of the same length. It is the poetic language that creates depth within a short space of words. This book is an important read for an audience that looks for a shorter read with a lot of thought inside. The significance of the different voices is that the story cannot be seen simply as a light read. The very nature of the book comes from the differences between the characters speaking, and sometimes the polar opposites are reflected in their opinion. This connects very well to the character Laura, since no one knows her full story. Just like the book may seem a light narration of a popular girl and prom, but really touch on cultural, racial, and parental issues, Laura Li is both loved and hated by the writers in the book, suffering from an absent father, and ill brother, and a mother who beats her- all behind the scenes. //Split Image//, then, is…split.