Time You Let Me In: 25 Poets under 25

This compilation of poems is heartfelt, sad, and truthful. With a mixture of different poems under the age of 25, we find that many are pertaining to tales of our youth. The meaning behind growing up, the darkness and evil within the world, the beauty of our world around us, and even questioning a higher power. Our lives from an early age are full of questions and learning to understand; some stories are more tragic than others with references to abuse and discrimination, but all of these things happen in the real world.I would rate this book a 4.5 stars for readers 12-13 and up. It deals with a lot of issues and events that our children see in life and are ingenuous ways of exploring another person's mind. This was an assigned reading for my Adolescent Literature course, but I enjoyed reading the various poems. Many of them brought back feelings and questions that I had when I was younger.

I am a simple person. I often find poetry mysterious and unattainable. However, I loved this collection of poems. It is inspiring to see such talent in young authors, especially in a culture so distracted by celebrities and video games.Of special note, I am amazed at the works by Jocelyn Stott and I look forward to see if she publishes anything else.

I'm in it, so I'm biased, but I really enjoyed this collection of poetry. The middle school age students I have shared it with have been engaged by it.

Some good poetry. Some great.

Inspiring poetry by young writers. This book would make an excellent gift to encourage student writers. It would also be an wonderful book to include in classroom collections.

Four of these poems really resonated with me:Lauren Espinoza, "where I live" -- about discrimination within the Latino community based on 'how Mexican' one is (meaningful to me that I am also reading Ernest J. Gaines, Jr.'s novel A Lesson Before Dying which emphasizes how the African-American community discriminates based on 'how black' its members are)Nicole Guenther, "membership" -- about nature being the poet's 'church'Emma Shaw Crane, "kitchen witness" -- how women are expected to live as servants to menAllison Rivers, "The Giving Tree" - a child of divorce recounts her overnight visit with her father, which includes him reading her Shel Silverstein's The Giving Tree. Her reaction to the ending of that book is the same as mine -- so of course I love the poem!

When I saw Time You Let Me In highlighted in a recent review journal, I knew I would find some real gold in here (especially given the respect that editor Naomi Shihab Nye commands). And let me say, this collection does not disappoint.Nye brings together 26 poets, all under the age of 25, in a collection of moving, insightful, and beautiful poems that cover the spectrum of topics, styles, and voices. Each poet and each poem is unique, with the sort of artistic eye only people who are under 25 can bring. I say that as a 25 year old, which makes it legitimate, right?A review I read of this title criticized the voices in Time You Let Me In as "young." I would hope so. The insights one gets in poetry from the youth perspective is just as important as the "established" poet (i.e., your old white men to whom you are comparing these poems to). I'll be honest in saying I never once felt I was reading teen angst poems.Highlights for me included Chase Berggrum's short and pointed pieces, Gray Emerson's disregard for traditional stylings and zesty word play, Margaret Bashaar's treatment of humor and romance (perhaps one in the same), and -- perhaps my favorite -- Kayla Sargenson's grandfather memories. Sargenson has a very powerful poem equating rape with New Orleans that will haunt me for a while, and thanks to the masterful editing job by Nye, I was able to read the next selection of Sargenson's "The Happiest Moment of My Life was When I Realized I was Happy" a little bit differently.Anyone who has a background in poetry knows one of the biggest challenges in collecting works is exactly how they will progress within a volume. It is a struggle, as your reading of one poem will inform, enhance, or detract meaning from poems following. Nye deserves the highest praises for balancing the order with meaning.

Naomi Shihab Nye has been writing poetry for a long time. An excellent poet in her own right, it seems only fitting that Nye should choose twenty-five poets and compile their writings into a single volume.All of these aspiring authors are under the age of twenty-five. Their poems speak of many things - love, loss, culture, war, belonging, and being remembered.Each author possesses his/her own unique style and flow. Their offerings range from free verse rantings to odes about hair to indexes on love. They use phrases like "pulled your heart like a heavy plate from the cabinet of your chest" and "I'm writing to your soul because your body is ashes."Their words will resonate with those who are young. These authors are full of hope, and their poetry conveys this in every word, sentence, and stanza. I highly suggest adding this poetry collection to any library where young people are patrons.Reviewed by: LadyJay