Foreign Exchange: A Mystery in Poems

by Mel Glenn

In the latest book by award-winning poet Mel Glenn, a riveting mystery unfolds through a series of poems. When students from big-city Tower High School spend a weekend in rural Hudson Landing with the students of the local high school, an African-American boy from the city is accused of murdering a local white girl. Young adults will eagerly read the poems to try to piece together clues and discover the killer's identity. The author weaves a compelling story as he explores racial prejudice and city/country stereotypes while creating insightful portraits of teenagers.

2000 Quick Picks for Young Adults (Recomm. Books for Reluctant Young Readers)

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Mystery, Teen, Novel In Verse

Hardcover

First published May 26, 1999

Reviews

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really love this book!

The entire book is written in poems for the prospective of city teens, country teens, and adults. It follows a group of high school students from the city as they spend the weekend with high school students from the country. Through the poems, we are able to see that all teenagers, no matter where they are from are facing problems like drug use, teen pregnancy, and peer pressure. This story takes a turn when a young girl is found dead and the whole town starts suspecting the young African American boy who was with her last.

Since this novel discusses issues such as drug use, teen pregnancy, and peer pressure, it would be appropriate for more mature students in both middle and high school. The author does a great job showing how teens stereotype one another when they are really very similar no matter how different their backgrounds may appear to be. It is also very creatively written with the use of poems rather than the typical chapter format. Overall, the theme of acceptance would appeal to a lot of teens.

[Cecile Msays · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Foreign Exchange" by Mel Glenn was the first novel I have ever read written in poetry. Though I enjoyed reading a novel in this type of writing, I felt the story in general was very typical and predictable. I also felt that this book contained a lot of information that essentially had no effect on the plot. The story is about a girl who is murdered, yet I found myself reading random poems about how some girl thinks her dad is too harsh on her, among other poems that were ultimately useless to the story! I did enjoy the style she wrote in though, one poem for every person's thought, and how she took a stance against racism when the only black boy in town is immediately convicted of murder. The last think about this book that slightly annoyed me was how the whole thing was supposed to be about the search as to who murdered this girl, but when I read the book, only about five pages actually concerned looking for the murderer, with the rest filled with tidbits of other people's lives. I liked reading a novel in poetry, but this one's plot wasn't great!

[Jayda W · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book "Foreign Exchange: A Mystery in Poems", was a book was a book about multiple high school students that gets introduced to this uptown girl. But, everything turns when she gets murdered, and now everyone who knew her is in question. This book was definitely worth the read, and I recommend this book to anyone who loves poetry, and mystery, because this book ties it all into one which gives the book more depth.

[Julie Suzanne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd give this a 2.5 if it were possible. I typically love novels in verse because some of the poems, or a set of poems, are just so well done--I may linger on a few and relish the technique. However, this was just like Witness (Hesse) in that you have to keep track of like 20 different characters, with barely enough development for any of them to really stand out. As with Witness, the plot is almost entirely implicit, requiring a great degree of inference ability on the part of the reader (so no low-level readers for this one). The mystery aspect of the plot lacked suspense, probably due to the lack of a detective & clues. I figured out who killed Kristin Clarke early in, but later realized that possible motives were being suggested about most of the characters and considered the possibility of each for just a fleeting moment. The confession came too soon, rendering the same effect as a Scooby Doo mystery.

It wasn't completely useless, though, as it portrayed some themes very effectively, with the use of poems from multiple voices with similar structure & diction juxtaposed, like the disadvantages of life in small towns (the way the people interact), universal issues faced by teens from all backgrounds (a stereotype-buster), racism, and how gossip (or "the media") can lead to hysteria.

My overall reaction is: Hmmmm....interesting. And that's about it.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a YA murder mystery written entirely through poems. . Each page contains a single poem written in different voices and a small visual to help readers know whether the character lives in Hudson Landing or from the city. Each character’s voice adds to the fullness of this story. Through the poems we get glimpses of what the lives of the teens and the adults around them are like. By pairing poems, including the same phrases in each poem, Glenn shows how the rural and urban teens are alike and yet uniquely different. Some poems have two voices, with the second voice not present in the poem, but we can “hear” what that person is saying in response.

While some poems move the plot along, most provide candid glimpses into the characters’ thoughts and feelings in a way a novel can’t. I would recommend this book for teens because of the many connections they can make to these characters. The issues discussed in the book provide opportunities for students to think about who they are, how they fit in, and how they are similar and different from those around them. It is a thought provoking novel about stereotypes and the consequences they can have. Because the poems are short, this book is a quick read and would appeal to a reluctant reader that feels overwhelmed by excessive amounts of ink on a page.

[Salsabrarian]

A look at the power of stereotypes of all kinds (racial, cultural, sexual, etc.) and how they can color one’s thinking.

In rural, routine Hudson Landing, the biggest stirs are the big new supermarket and Kristen Clarke, the beautiful daughter of the supermarket manager. Now something new is happening with the “foreign exchange†weekend in which high school kids from the big city are invited to spend time matched with a Hudson Landing peer. But after the dance, Kristen’s body is found in the lake, a victim of murder. Everyone assumes Kwame, the African-American boy from the city, did it because he was at the scene. It turns out it was the alcoholic city council member, Oliver Nesbitt whose little grocery was failing because of the supermarket.

[Meaghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read. The verse sketches of the characters rang true, and Glenn perfectly captured the atmosphere of a small, rural, close-knit town. However, it wasn't much of a mystery. I didn't really care much who killed Kirsten, and the identification at the murderer at the end didn't bring any thrill to me, or even that sense of “aha, of course it had to have been him!” thing which I believe is essential to a good murder mystery.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book more than I did. I liked the premise and the concept a lot - a verse novel about a mystery, told from the perspectives of the different teens (and a few adults) connected to the mystery. I liked the poems, and I thought they did a good job of giving you a sense of who the characters were. But there were just way too many characters, which made it hard to keep them straight, and which muddied the plot.

[Kim · Rating 2 out of 5]

the story is told in verse thru a collection of multiple perspectives. predictable and cliche.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

there are about twenty different named characters in this book, only one or two are likable. the named murderer isn't a suprize, neither is the outcome. but a teen would probably love the book.

[Rikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

A neat way to present a mystery. It was a little confusing at times because there were so many characters, but it was good.