Betsy Franco.2008. Falling Hard: 100 Love Poems by Teenagers. Cambridge Mass. Candlewick Press. ISBN 978-0-7636-3437-7.
Falling Hard: 100 Love Poems by Teenagers is an anthology of poems written by teenagers. These poems are real expressions of the pain and pleasure of teenage love. The diversity of poems is great, but the poetry stays true to the title with the soul focus on love. Topics include race, sexual identity, maturity, and lifestyle. Franco collected these poems from around the world as teens sent her their submissions via email. These poems are for everyone no matter the age, gender, or sexual orientation of a person. These poems are uncensored and raw containing a true look into the teenage heart. The language can get intense using several four letter words and some poems are very sexual.
The poems are laid out in a very open design and in no way arranged in any particular order. The poems vary in length from one line to two pages or more. Most of the poems are written in free verse, but some rhyme, and some are filled with emotional metaphors with lots of descriptive language.
The high quality of poems in this book is terrific. The young writers in this book are incredibly talented and full of emotions. These poems will appeal to teenagers because it’s real life. You actually get to read what teenagers are feeling about real love. Not something that an adult has written that is edited for teenage ears. Teenagers will be inspired by the creativity, romance, sex, pain, and pleasure of these poems. Teenagers will be able to relate to these poems as they are happening to them in their lives. Most all teenagers experience their first love; find their hormones and their loose the love that they once cherished. Each poem speaks with the honesty from teenagers.
If teens are not willing to read poetry this is the book for them. They won’t even notice they are reading poetry. They will develop feelings for every one of these teens and relate to them all. It was like an emotional rollercoaster while reading these poems. I felt happy, sad, mad, and disappointed. An emotional rollercoaster is just what teenage love feels like so it is so realistic.
I have to say that selecting just one poem to share with you was incredibly difficult. All of these poems are so wonderful and so different that picking one is almost impossible. I finally decided on the poem titled The Last Day of Our Lifetime Together. I felt like this poem was so truthful and full of pain and it just made me feel sad for this poor teen. I hope everyone enjoys it and I strongly suggest that everyone pick up this book and read all these wonderfully written poems.
The Last Day of Our Lifetime Together
The last kiss is always the hardest,
lips barely moving together
but once they touch, it lasts no longer
than forgetfulness.
She was captivated by the architecture
of my elbow
firmly placed around her shoulder.
Then the darkness, lowering, and lowering,
until our daytime visions
dissolved into dreams.
It was heavenly, but I had to do
what I had to do.
I handed her the letter.
A letter because I was strong enough
to start a relationship
but not man enough to break out.
She unlaced it,
fold flowing out of fold.
She read it!!
In the time it took to sink in
she has a dozen questions.
I replied with an answer that gave
no answer.
Our eternal happiness now eternally gone,
darkness will be the point from which
we start.
L.C. HUGHLEY, age 17
Classroom/Library Connection
Recommended audience: Ages 15- adult
Recommended audience: Ages 15- adult
Before reading: Before reading this poem I will have the teenagers think about a love in their life. If they do not have a boyfriend or girlfriend it can be a parent or sibling, anyone that they are close to. I want them to think about a painful time that they experienced with them and how difficult love can be.
During reading: I would read the poem slowly so they can truly appreciate the poem and feel that raw feeling and emotions behind this boy and how he broke this girls heart by giving her a letter.
Reread the poem: I would then discuss the poem with them and get the teenagers feelings from this poem. Are they sad for the girl or do they feel bad for the boy. Did the boy handle the situation poorly? I want their opinions on this. We would write down our feelings on the board and compare them.
After reading: I will have each teen write their own poem about love. It can be a happy poem, sad poem, but I want it to be a poem about their true feelings just like the teens in this book. The collection of poems that the class wrote will then be made into a book and each student will a copy that is in the class.
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