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Burg, Ann E. All the Broken Pieces: A Novel in Verse. New York: Scholastic Press, 2009. ISBN: 978-0-545-08092-7.
Poetic Elements
In the linear format of narrative verse, Ann Burg gives us a beautiful and moving novel with a historical focus on the Vietnam War. Immediately, the figurative language and imagery Burg uses gives seventh grade Vietnam refugee, Matt Pinn, a strong voice and helps the reader make emotional connections with his grief. Of his American soldier father, Matt says:
His name
I will never say,
though forever I carry his blood
in my blood,
forever his bones
stretch in my bones.
To me,
he is nothing.
Burg uses alliteration in Matt’s recollection of his Vietnamese mother as well:
I carry her too,
her blood in my blood,
her bones in my bones.
Eyes I will not forget,
though I see them
only in dreams,
in fog,
through thick clouds of smoke.
I hear her voice,
thin, shrill staccato notes,
her words short puffs of air
that push me along,
inch by inch, breath by breath.
Matt’s American adoptive parents are loving and take him back to the adoption agency for two years to learn English and study the Vietnamese culture. Matt’s recollection of Vietnam was very different than that the adoption agency spoke of:
We did not talk about
the American War,
how tanks lumbered
in the roads
like drunken elephants,
and bombs fell
from the sky
like dead crows.
Matt said the teacher was a tiny woman who told happy stories
of people and places he did not know:
Colorful costumes
and carnival dragons
live in another Vietnam,
a Vietnam
that I do not remember.
I close my eyes.
I listen.
I try to remember
the colors,
but I cannot.
I try to form
dragons from
dust,
but I cannot.
I try again.
But I cannot.
My Vietnam
is drenched
in smoke and fog.
It has no parks
or playgrounds,
no classrooms
or teachers.
It is not
on any map
or in any book.
My Vietnam is
only
a pocketful
of broken pieces
I carry
inside me.
Appeal
This novel takes a realistic, candid approach in revealing the horrific, lingering effects of war on both sides of the conflict through events and situations young people are familiar with today. Three years after being adopted, Matt is dealing with prejudice, bullies, a coach diagnosed with cancer, a baby brother who might take his place, and nightmares. Ironically, the bully who blamed Matt for the death of his brother as well as taking his place on the pitching mound, ends up helping Matt to overcome guilt over an accident involving the brother he was forced to leave behind. Eventually, with the encouragement of a Vietnam veteran support group, a love for the game of baseball and his music teacher, Matt comes to understand his birth mother truly loved him.
Overall Quality
The overall quality of Burg’s first attempt at a verse novel was indicated by the following awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults
Booklist Best of Editor’s Choice
2009 Booklist Top Ten First Novels for Youth
2009 Booklist Top Ten Historical Fiction for Youth
NYPL 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
Cybils Awards Finalist
Winner of the 2010 Jefferson Cup
The Poet
Ann Burg has been writing since she was a child and this explanation of her love for words can be found on her website at www.annburg.com/: “Some words are beautiful. Some are not. Some sparkle like glittering fireflies. Some are heavy and hurtful as rocks. I’ve collected them all. Words shape my world.”
Layout
The image of a tattered and torn baseball folds around from front to back, making for a mysterious and eye catching cover. Matter of fact, the cover is what first drew me to the novel and once I opened the cover and began reading, I didn’t stop until I reached the last page.
Spotlight Poem
All the Broken Pieces
(pgs. 58-59)
The assignment is
easy enough.
Without describing them physically,
choose one member of your family,
and write a brief character sketch
about them. Remember, we learn
more about a character
through their actions than their appearance.
Actions speak louder than adjectives.
I pull a pencil
from my top drawer.
My top drawer
is full of pencils, new,
used, half used, and
all-the-way-to-the-eraser-cap used.
I never get rid of pencils.
I never get rid of anything.
Who knows?
Even a stub
is worth something.
If bombs fall here,
if something so terrible
ever happens
that I get sent away,
I’ll stuff everything
I can fit
into my pockets.
Even the broken pieces
are worth something
to me.
Poetry Break
Introduction: I would pass around a basket full of pencils that were new, used, half used and too short to sharpen. I would ask each student to choose one before I read the above excerpt from All the Broken Pieces.
I would have students watch a short video clip depicting the devastating effects the Vietnam War had on civilian life in Vietnam. I would follow it up with a short description of the prejudice that ensued after the war toward the Vietnam veterans as well as the Vietnamese people.
Extension Activity:
After reading the novel, I display the following lines:
Remember, we learn
more about a character
through their actions than their appearance.
Actions speak louder than adjectives.
Then, have students discuss the bullying that goes on in schools today and how it relates to the bullying in All the Broken Pieces.
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