RUBBER HOUSES by Ellen Yeomans

Yeomans, Ellen. 2007. RUBBER HOUSES. New York: Little, Brown, and Company. ISBN 9780316106474

Review

Through a course of poems, teenage Kit, experiences the cancer diagnoses of her brother and his eventual death.  She must then learn to cope with her grief, her family, and the return to school.  Tears may be shed but the ending will remind readers of hope, happiness, and the purpose of having relationships to heal. 

This verse novel tells a story and does not rely on rhyming, though there are instances of it.  Some poems use repetition; three sentences in a row starting with “This woman…” or “I miss…” where she states “I miss Callie/I miss swimming/I miss the outdoors.” 

As a reader, the place the story turned for me was in the poem SCAR TISSUE.  As she soaks in the bath, she begins scraping at blackened tile caulk and compares it to “deep scar tissue,” and “opening the wound.”  Who knew picking at tile caulk could be part of a grieving process?  The author also supplies such details and opportunities to visualize the events.  She describes phone calls from Kit’s friend Callie wanting to be there for her and the hoard of food in the trunk of the car not eaten because of her sadness.  She describes grieving parents and her brother’s bad habits that she doesn’t want to forget.  “Peeled his nails/low and raw/fingertips sore/and often bleeding” and “terrible singing voice/low and flat/mixed up tunes/confused lyrics” are two examples. 

This story has potential to be emotional and difficult for some to read if they have experienced something similar.  Most teenagers will be able to relate in some way as so many have dealt with tragedy and/or feeling separated from others and lonely.    An unlikely friendship with an older hardware store worker, Mr. Larkin, adds elements of surprise and hope to the story.      

Poetry in Action:

Introducing the Poem:  Have students identify an important event in their life.  It could be joyful, sad, emotional, exciting, devastating.  Have the students indicate an object, something tangible that represents their event.  For example, cotton candy may represent a day at the fair or bandana to represent a mom who had cancer. 

Follow up Activity:  Read the students the poem and then ask questions about how the molded tub caulk was a metaphor for Kit’s circumstances.  After discussion, have students think about their event again.  Using the intangible object, have students draw their intangible object and create a poem for the event and the object. 

Scar Tissue

Soaking in my tub

I notice

the ring of caulk blackened in the corners,

beneath the soap dish too

a scabbed wound of mildew.

I pick at it with fingers

and a rattail comb,

pulling out bits of crumbly scum and sealant

laying it along the side of the tub,

leaving a gaping one-inch slash.

Toweling off

I grab tweezers from the drawer,

and pull out more dark, stiff caulk.

Another couple inches of crevice revealed

where tile used to meet tub.

Focused I dig,

pull, scrape out

diseased scar tissue,

wiping with a washcloth

opening the wound to light and air.

Soon I’ll find my bathrobe,

get a screwdriver,

finish it right.

But for now I’ll continue with comb and

tweezers.