All the Broken Pieces By: Ann E. Burg

This novel was written in verse. this is not a typical of a young adult novel to my knowledge. I believe Shakespeare ' s plays were, but that is a long time ago when I read them. Basically, the novel was written about a Vietnamese boy, who in his country saw many terrible atrocities during the Vietnam War. Fortunately, Matt was helicoptered out of Vietnam, by U.S. forces , because Matt was adopted by an American family in the United States. Matt lost his birth Mother in Vietnam , and his younger brother too.
Matt had recurring dreams at night that were vivid, and terrifying for Matt. He relives his past in Vietnam. His new adoptive Mother loves Matt very much, so she tries to help him get through his new life in the United States. Matt has a step brother called Tommy, who excels in baseball, and plays the piano. Tommy is an inspiration to Matt. Matt begins to play on the baseball team, and becomes quite good.
The title of the novel "All the Broken Pieces" is an exercise the baseball coach gave the team to pull apart a baseball, and see how it is made.
This novel shows the lasting effect War can have on a teen like Matt. I feel the reader can learn plenty from this novel. I liked the novel.
LRD- 8/8/10