Kinds of Poetry: Who Killed Mr. Chippendale - A Book Review

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Glenn, Mel. 1996. Who Killed Mr. Chippendale?: A Mystery in Poems. NY: Lodestar Books. ISBN: 0525675302.

SUMMARY
When the high school English teacher, Mr. Chippendale, is murder at the school’s track students and people whose lives he affected share their personal thoughts as the police and a guidance councilor figure out who is the murderer.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Presented in free-verse form, Mel Glenn’s mystery verse novel explores the aftermath of Mr. Chippendale’s murder. Instead emphasizing on the mystery, the intrigue, and the whodunit, Glenn focuses more on the emotional and personal impact that the unexpected and harsh death of the high school teacher caused.

English teacher Mr. Chippendale, or Mr. C. as some many students called him, was popular among many of the students. He played a pivotal in the life choices of many of his students lives such as Celia Campbell who praised her poetry and Cynthia Arroyo who wanted to be a writer and had Mr. C tell her that her job at the Hot Dog Heaven is an “opportunity:”

‘Study people’s faces, not french fries.
Hear how they order, not what,
And imagine a minibiography
For each of them.
Make a connection, no matter how brief,
What do you think they feel?
What do you feel about them?
Even if it’s about customers and condiments.
Learning about life is a painstaking task,
But it has to be done with
Relish’ (p. 28).

There are also thoughts from those who had taken his class terms before but were affected by his death, such as Karen Miller who witness Mr. Chippendale being shot in the head who describes her constantly memory of the death as a “never-ending video loop/projected in of [her] eyes” (p. 66). There is also Leah Talbot who had a crush on the teacher. There were students who failed his class that did not care that he had died, and there were those who did not care plain and simple.

There are more than thirteen voices in the novel that tells this story; however, Angela Falcone can be considered one of the most important characters. As Tower High School’s guidance counselor she serves as a person where the students could share their thoughts about the teacher. She also use to be Mr. Chippendale’s girlfriend, which attracts unnecessary initial suspicion from the police. It is also through her that the murderer is ultimately apprehended.

Though all the poems are the personal thoughts of the characters, Glenn mixes things up by presenting the thoughts as Eugene Braymore’s, the police captain, press memo, possible motives, personal memo and reminders, notes from the murderer, an interview between Angela Falcone and an the detective Harry Balinger in which questions are being asked and answered and their personal thoughts correspond:

…
“Any students complain....................I use to hate high
......about him?”............................................school
“they complain about ......................Whining 101
.......everyone.”
“Can you think of............................Worth a shot, why not?
.......Anyone specific?”
“The murderer just pops up.............He’s too cocky, a kid.
......in my mind.”
“Nothing rings a bell,........................She’s hiding something.
.......then?”
“No.”.................... .......................Who am I, Quasimodo?
…

Another form that is seen is also a letter to Mr. Chippendale, which came after his death, from the Board of Education concerning the matter that he had not specify “which health-care option” he had chosen, and that he need to replay immediately so they can “best serve” him and that they wish him “good health and a long career” (p. 18). By including this letter, the impact of Mr. Chippendale’s death is deepened.

Since the novel focuses more on the thoughts and emotions of the characters rather than the mystery of who is the murdered, which is seen in traditional mystery novels, there are not many twists and turns that makes the reader truly get caught up in who the murder is. There are, however, subtle hints within the poems. The most significant element is a red sweatshirt that only appears as a voice twice and appears an article of clothing in two other poems. Another more apparent “hint” would be the presences of a few characters who did not like the teacher and who liked watching movies with “blood and stuff.” With these subtle elements it allows the readers to keep on wondering who really did kill Mr. Chippendale.

The novel ends with a simple Epilogue: Roll Call that explains what happened to the each character thirteen years after the murder, which includes the murderer. It then comes to a poignant close with a new teacher arrives at the school:

“In the early morning light,
Roberta Chartoff, a new English teacher,
Walks up the front steps of the school,
Eager to step onto the educational wonderwheel
Cautiously, she approaches the main office
And notices a little plaque to the left of the time clock.
It reads:

Robert Chippendale
Teacher, Scholar, Friend

‘Whose that?’ she wonders,
As she punches in a 7:04.”

By staying true to poetry as an literary art form in which emotion and imagery are expressed and by incorporating the free verse style with different presentations like notes, letters, memos, conversations, etc., but also including the needed hint of a mystery of who killed Mr. Chippendale, Glenn’s mystery is a unique addition to any library collection.



CONNECTIONS
*Ask the students if they had an idea who the murderer might have been. Where there any hints or literary element that they picked up on?
*For another mystery in poem read Mel Glenn’s Foreign Exchange: A Mystery In Poem.

Poetry: Witness

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Hesse, Karen. (2001). WITNESS. NY: Scholastic Press, Inc. ISBN: 0439271991.

*Winner of the 2002 Christopher Awards*


PLOT SUMMARY
During the year of 1924, eleven Vermont townspeople, consisting of two children and nine adults, tell the story of how their town and lives were affected by the appearance of the Ku Klux Klan.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Through free verse narratives in this historical novel, Hesse authentically captures eleven individuals’ voice and beliefs. In the cast there are:

* Leanora Sutter, a twelve year old black girl
* Merlin Van Tornhout, an eighteen year old who joins the Klan only to realize that he is not a killer
* Esther Hirsh, an innocent Jewish six year old
* Parcelle Johnson, the town constable
* Sarah Chickering, a farmer who allows Esther and her father to live in her house
* Johnny Reeves, a corrupt and hypocritical clergyman,
* Iris Weaver, the restaurant owner and rumrunner by the name of
* Fitzgerald Flitt, a doctor
* Harvey and Viola Pettibone, who own a shop and who disagree with their opinions on the Klan
* Reynard Alexander, a newspaper editor who is against the Klan

The book is organized into five acts, the traditional Dramatic Structure found in classic pieces of literature like the Greek dramas. Each character speaks at least once in each act. Each narrative has the name of the character for reference to the reader. All of the poems are free verse narrative. Because of the free verse style, Hesse has the ability to write simple yet powerful stories. None of the narratives have capitalized words, not even proper nouns. This allows the readers to only focus (and not be distracted by large letters) on the text and what is being told. It also represents the simple style of speech of all the characters.

Even though it may be simple, each character has a specific way of talking. If the name was not known, the readers could still figure out who is talking by their tone of “voice,” their speech pattern, and their use of words. Esther is the easiest to recognize because of her childlike thoughts and way of describing, such as when she and Sarah Chickering were oiling keys and locks of the door, Esther describes how Sarah works in the lubricant, “openshutopenshut” (Hesse, p. 156). Reynard Alexander, a man of writing knowledge because of his profession, speaks clear and proper in comparison to the other adult characters. The clergyman, Johnny Reeves, says “neighbor” constantly has he gives his sermons. With these touches, Hesse truly makes, without any personal descriptions (other than what the pictures allow), the characters full and round and not flat, and full of emotions.

Another element that makes Witness a fantastic book is the clear progression and evolvement, as traditionally seen in a five-act play, of the characters, in the midst of the Ku Klux Klan’s efforts to recruit member and remove the Leanora and Esther and their fathers from the town. Some characters were pro-Klan; however they changed their thoughts by the end of the book. Merlin Van Tornhout is a prime example of this. After he joined the Klan he could not bring himself to poison the Sutter’s well because he “remembered [Leanora]/ racing that train/ and she was still a colored girl/ but she wasn’t a/ colored girl,” (Hesse, p. 150). How could he kill a black girl who did a heroic and humanly act of had saving little Esther from being crushed by a train at the railway tracks? Other characters’ changes were subtler such as Sarah Chickering’s growing love for Esther, her constant companions. If it was not for Esther she “might have joined the ladies’ klan” (Hesse, p. 59). Befriending the elderly Civil War veteran Mr. Field, Leanora learns that not all white people were the same. Reynard Alexander started out has being a neutral party when it came to the klan business; however, by Act Four he was completely against the klan and states boldly that,

persecution is not american
it is not american to give the power of life and death
to a secret organization
it is not american to have out citizens judged by
an invisible jury.
it is not american to have bands of night riders
apply the punishment of medieval europe to
freeborn men

the ku klux klan must go (Hesse, p. 125).

By the end, the evolvement of the all the characters had taken place and life begins to calm as the Klan leaves because of the cool treatment of the Vermont government.

What makes this book a true historical novel is not just the time period but also the mention of famous historical figures well known during that year. Iris Weaver, who is quite the independent woman, mentions that, “down in texas/ mrs. mariam ferguson,/ … defeated the klan candidate/ … if she wins,/ she’ll be the first woman/ governor in/ this whole damn country./ imagine” (Hesse, p. 28), which is true, Mrs. Ferguson did become governor. There was a great deal of talk about the famous murder trial of the Leopold and Loeb, who killed Bobby Franks, who was rich, white and Jewish, not for hate but for the thrill and because they could. Even Leanora wrote to Helen Keller asking about “how maybe we’d be better off if no one could see./ then nobody would mind about/ a person’s skin color” and Ms. Keller replied with an autographed copy of her The World I Live In (Hesse, p.152). With these references to historical figures and events, the story is richer and gives background information to the time that it was set in, which educates the readers.

With all these wonderfully detailed elements, Hesse has created an amazing story of how a town and its people of all race and backgrounds are affected when a corrupt organization like the Ku Klux Klan enters their lives, and power of standing up to what they believe.

BOOK REVIEWS
KIRKUS REVIEWS
In this stunning piece of little-known American history, Hesse (Stowaway, 2000, etc.) paints small-town Vermont on the brink of self-destruction circa 1924. The narrative poetry format has fitting roots in "The Spoon River Anthology." Eleven characters speak revealingly for themselves to describe a year in which the Ku Klux Klan arrives, seduces many solid citizens, moves from intimidation to threat to violence, and is finally rejected by the tolerant, no-nonsense townsfolk. Central to the story are two children, one an African-American named Leanora, and the other, a Jewish fresh-air child from New York, named Esther. As targets of prejudice, the lives of both are affected by the actions of the KKK: Leanora is the victim of racist remarks and threats, and Esther sees her father shot while she's sitting on his lap. The story is all the more haunting for its exquisite balance of complex and intersecting points of view on gender, ethnicity, politics, religion, and money. The setting is well developed through subtly embedded period details of everyday Vermont life (a broom sale creates a stampede) and incidents of national historical significance (the Leopold and Loeb trial). The voices of each character have a distinct resonance, but the voice of Esther, the moral center of the book, is memorable. It has a unique beauty and style created by Esther's innocent and hopeful way of expression, but revealing of her immigrant roots in New York. This is carefully crafted, with Leanora, who evolves and grows in wisdom and understanding, being given the first and last word. What Copeland created with music, and Hopper created with paint, Hesse deftly and unerringly creates with words: the iconography of Americana, carefully researched, beautifully written, and profoundly honest. (Fiction. 10-14) (August 1, 2001)

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The author of Out of the Dust again turns language into music in her second quietly moving novel written entirely in verse. Here, 11 narrative voices chronicle actual events occurring in a sleepy Vermont town after the arrival of the Ku Klux Klan in 1924. Those victimized by the Klan include the families of Leanora Sutter, a 12-year-old African-American girl, and Esther Hirsh, the six-year-old daughter of a Jewish shoe salesman. Rounding out the portrait of the town are community leaders (an enlightened physician, a newspaper editor who moves from neutral to anti-Klan) as well as less prominent folk shopkeepers, a Protestant minister who are swayed into joining the white supremacist group. Their chorus of hatred rings loudly at first, but is tempered by their dawning realization of the severity of the Klan's punishment to their targets as well as the more rational, compassionate strains of the Klan's opponents. Hesse offers glimpses of the world at large through references to Prohibition, the Leopold and Loeb case and a letter Leanora pens to Helen Keller. The author distinguishes the characters (whose pictures appear in the front of the book) not only by their varying opinions but also by their tone of speech. The simpler, candid language of the two youngest cast members, Leanora and Esther, effectively crystallizes their gradual loss of innocence. Easily read in one sitting, this lyrical novel powerfully records waves of change and offers insightful glimpses into the hearts of victims, their friends and their enemies. Ages 9-12. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information. (August 20, 2001)

CONNECTIONS
*Introduce the Dramatic Structure to the students and have them analyze the text with the Freytag Pyramid method (Exposition, Rising Action Climax, Falling Action, and Denouement.)
*Have students pick a character and read the story as if it was a play.
*Read more books by Karen Hesse like Out of the Dust and Aleutian Sparrow.
*Read books about similar issues such as the Holocaust like Number of Stars by Lois Lowry.