Behind the Wheel: Poems About Driving

by Janet S. Wong

"Forget kindergarten, sharing.

Everything you need to know

you learn right here

behind the wheel."

So begins the title poem of this collection for young adults in which Janet S. Wong looks at driving as a metaphor for life. Through thirty-six poems that range in subject from passing the written driver's test and borrowing a car, to parallel parking and being pulled over by a cop, to car accidents and parents' anxieties, the poet succeeds in touching on all the subjects of concern to young people -- love, death, hopes and dreams.

Contemporary, honest, and direct, these poems offer a fresh approach to a subject of deep interest to today's young people.

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult

48 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 1999

About the author

Janet S. Wong was born in Los Angeles, and grew up in Southern and Northern California. As part of her undergraduate program at UCLA, she spent her junior year in France, studying art history at the Université de Bordeaux. When she returned from France, Janet founded the UCLA Immigrant Children's Art Project, a program focused on teaching refugee children to express themselves through art.

After graduating from UCLA, summa cum laude, with a B.A. in History and College Honors, Janet then obtained her J.D. from Yale Law School, where she was a director of the Yale Law and Technology Association and worked for New Haven Legal Aid. After practicing corporate and labor law for a few years for GTE and Universal Studios Hollywood, she made a dramatic career change—choosing to write for young people instead. Her successful switch from law to children’s literature has been the subject of several articles and television programs, most notably an O Magazine article, a "Remembering Your Spirit" segment on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," and the Fine Living Channel’s "Radical Sabbatical."

Janet's poems and stories have been featured in many textbooks and anthologies, and also in some more unusual venues. Poems from Behind the Wheel have been performed on a car-talk radio show. "Albert J. Bell" from A Suitcase of Seaweed was selected to appear on 5,000 subway and bus posters as part of the New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority's "Poetry in Motion" program, and was later highlighted on the Hallmark Channel’s "New Morning" show. And, in April 2003, Janet was one of five children’s authors invited to read at The White House Easter Egg Roll.

Janet and her books have received numerous awards and honors, such as the International Reading Association's "Celebrate Literacy Award" for exemplary service in the promotion of literacy, and the prestigious Stone Center Recognition of Merit, given by the Claremont Graduate School. Janet also has been appointed to two terms on the Commission on Literature of the National Council of Teachers of English.

Janet currently resides near Princeton, NJ, with her husband Glenn and her son Andrew.

Reviews

[Caitlin]

In the mood for poetry about learning how to drive? About the heady excitement, and the horror, and what happens if you pump anti-lock brakes? (And yeah I totally laughed at that one.) Want to relive your own horrifying ascent to the driver's side through your parents' moralizing tales, filtered through someone else's words? Then you might enjoy Behind the Wheel! I know I'll think of "Grandmother's Car" a lot, myself, because I've known women like Grandmother, and I know them still. My full review is available here: https://essentiallyanerd.wordpress.co...

[Montserrat Ocampo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Behind the Wheel by Janet S. Wong was honestly a good poetry book. Each page or poem was entertaining to read, they weren't too long nor too short. In my opinion, the details of how driving works were good details to keep in mind when driving. Especially certain pages/ poems about crashing or being stopped by a police were so good and descriptive. You could almost feel the fear. I rate this book a 5/5.

[Kirsten Brooks]

This book was a good book of poetry to read. I think some of the poems were a bit heavy for some students, so making sure they are developmentally prepared for them will be key. They are raw and emotional and really can teach your students that poetry does not have to rhyme.

[Kris Dersch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Not all poetry has to be life changing but there wasn't enough depth here to keep me interested. It paled in comparison to Naomi Shihab Nye's I'll Ask You Three Times if You're Okay.

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forget kindergarten,

sharing.

Everything you need to know

you learn right here

behind the wheel.

So begins the title poem of this collection for young adults in which Janet S. Wong looks at driving as a metaphor for life. Through thirty-six poems that range in subject from passing the written driver's test and borrowing a car, to parallel parking and being pulled over by a cop, to car accidents and parents' anxieties, the poet succeeds in touching on all the subjects of concern to young people -- love, death, hopes and dreams.

Contemporary, honest, and direct, these poems offer a fresh approach to a subject of deep interest to today's young people.

[Fatima · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, some of the poems like Stuff and you Have Got To were really good. Overall not a bad quick read.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slight volume of poetry for young adults. Just enough to keep them interested. Good advice about driving and life, not crammed down their throats. 1 problem, it was written in 1999, so no talk about phones or texting. I'm giving it to my step grandson for Christmas

[Scott Whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the poems are very metaphoric while being about driving on the surface and life between the lines. Others are a little more shallow. I liked many of them, but the metaphor became overworked in time.

[Leonard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a brief collection of driving poems for teenagers. Interesting, original and fortunately not long enough to get tiring.

[Daniela]

this a poerty book about driving and abot how much this family wants to be save they dont wanna wake up without knowing if they died or not in the car crash