The Taking of Room 114: A Hostage Drama in Poems
Did the subtitle jar you a bit? "A Hostage Drama in Poems." Poems?! It works remarkably well. Mel Glenn takes a difficult subject--a berserk teacher holding his students hostage--and lets the drama play out in this unusual format. The poems--five from each student, one for each year of high school, and the last composed on the day of the crisis--reveal the thoughts, dreams, and fears of contemporary teens in an urban classroom. A bit like rap in visual form, the poems cut deep, build in suspense. The honesty expressed will capture the interest of even the most reluctant readers.