Q&A with Jacqueline Jules

  

 

 

Jacqueline Jules is the author of the book Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember, a novel in verse for children. It focuses on the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon. Her many other books include the Zapato Power series. She is also an educator and a librarian.

 

Q: We did a previous Q&A three years ago about your book Smoke at the Pentagon, but we're revisiting the book on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of 9/11--what reflections do you have about the book on this anniversary?

 

A: First off, it is startling to realize that it has actually been 25 years since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. My memory of that day feels too vivid to have taken place over two decades ago.

 

The majority of Americans can still recall exactly what they were doing when they heard news of the attacks. And if they lost loved ones on September 11, the day drastically altered the course of their lives. Thousands still suffer from health problems related to September 11.

 

Due to heightened security at airports and buildings, daily life has not been the same since September 11.  One month prior, in August 2001, I took a flight from Europe with my then 17-year-old son. He’d bought a Swiss Army knife on our trip and was allowed to take it on the plane. (We asked at check-in.) Can you imagine that happening since the attacks on September 11?

 

September 11 was a watershed event. Like Pearl Harbor, Americans lost their sense of safety. In addition to a major U.S. city, the headquarters of the United States military was attacked. The narrator in the first poem of my book, Smoke at the Pentagon, expresses the frightening thought: “If the Pentagon isn’t safe, no place is.”

 

Q: What reactions have you had from readers since the book was published?

 

A: Readers have been appreciative of the attention paid to the experience at the Pentagon. Almost all titles on this topic describe the fall of the Twin Towers and the tragedy in New York City while giving the Pentagon crash limited coverage.

 

Smoke at the Pentagon is unique in that it gives voice to those who witnessed this event in Northern Virginia and addresses the aftermath there. Both the Capitol Building and the Pentagon were targeted by the terrorists on 9/11.

 

Only the heroism of the passengers who went down with the plane in Pennsylvania prevented tragedy inside the District of Columbia. One of my neighbors chose to move out of Arlington because they no longer felt safe living in the nation’s capital.

 

When we remember 9/11, we should not overlook the lives lost at the Pentagon and the emotions of those who lived in the area at the time.   

 

Q: Why did you initially decide to write this book, and do you think young people today understand what happened on September 11, 2001?

 

A: In 2008, as an elementary school librarian in Northern Virginia, I realized that my students were unaware that anything had happened at the Pentagon. It was understandable since my elementary school students were toddlers in 2001.

 

However, I was disturbed by the lack of classroom discussion on the anniversary of September 11. This history was not a part of the curriculum students are tested on.

 

In 2026, many residents of the Washington, D.C., area still haven’t visited the memorial to 9/11 on the grounds of the Pentagon. Many locals don’t even know the memorial exists. People who live in other parts of the country are surprised to be reminded that the Pentagon was attacked the same day the Twin Towers fell.

 

The memory of 9/11 is dimming and limited in general, but particularly when it comes to the Pentagon crash. To my knowledge, Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember is the only book which focuses on the Arlington experience.

 

Q: What do you see as the legacy of the attacks?

 

A: The hole in the Pentagon, visible from the roadway, was repaired within a year. As a symbol of  American military strength, it was healing to see the building restored so quickly.

 

A middle school narrator in Smoke at the Pentagon recalls watching the Pentagon reconstruction from her school bus every morning. She says, “Seeing that building reborn bit by bit helps me believe that one day I won’t feel so broken, either.”

 

History can teach us that terrible things happen. It can also teach us that we can rebuild after tragedy and move forward.

 

Learning about the terrorist attacks on 9/11 is much more than a lesson in honoring the lives lost. It is an opportunity to remember that this country and its people have survived great difficulties before. If the need arises, we can do so again.

 

We live in anxious times, fearing disaster. A belief in our own resilience, gleaned from our knowledge of the past, can provide comfort and foster strength.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: Lately I have been writing poetry and picture books. Both genres require economy of language. I love the challenge of choosing precise words to describe what I want to say as briefly as possible.  

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

A: Smoke at the Pentagon: Poems to Remember has 20 narrative poems and an introduction easily broken into speaking parts. It could be performed as Reader’s Theater for a meaningful lesson remembering 9/11 on this important anniversary. Other teacher tips are available in a teacher’s  guide available on my website and the publisher’s website.

 

I am available to do virtual author visits free of charge with any classroom reading the book. Please contact me through my website at www.jacquelinejules.com.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Jacqueline Jules.