Time You Let Me In: 25 Poets under 25

by Naomi Shihab Nye

They are inspiring talented stunning remarkable wise

They are also fearless depressed hilarious impatient in love out of love pissed off

And they want you to let them in.

Genres: Poetry, Young Adult, Teen, Fiction, Anthologies

236 pages, Hardcover

First published February 23, 2010

About the author

Naomi Shihab Nye was born to a Palestinian father and an American mother. During her high school years, she lived in Ramallah in Jordan, the Old City in Jerusalem, and San Antonio, Texas, where she later received her B.A. in English and world religions from Trinity University. She is a novelist, poet and songwriter.

She currently lives in San Antonio, Texas. She was elected a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets in 2010.

Reviews

[Edita · Rating 5 out of 5]

I said wouldn't it be amazing
to be the last bit of light
from a collapsed star?
he said what?
I said wouldn't it be
amazing? mused
light has to stop
coming at one point
a stream cut off. tilted
back beside him
almost blind walking this dark
road I asked the shadowed sky
wouldn't it be lonely
to be that last light?
he said tentatively I guess. still
to the stars I said I wonder which ones
have already died. I thought
which stars' last light
like a last breath rushes
towards us now like a final
sigh of air
a final word
unheard and unrecorded.
I said we might be pulling
that light into our eyes
this instant. isn't that just
amazing? he looked
at me while I looked
up probing the stars with dreamy
eyes he said
I had never thought
of it that way.
silently I recognized
that as the most
stunning sentence—the most
beautiful words ever uttered.

— Nicole Guenther, "Photons"

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't read a poetry book all the way through except for like a little kids' one when I was a brand-new kind of mamma. (The kids are teenagers now.) I usually can't seem to write anything BUT poetry, and I have several published in various anthologies, but again, it's been some years. Okay, maybe a decade. I actually came across this book in a cool way. I was transcribing an interview with Naomi. (I do transcription for my job.) She read a bit of poetry, and I liked one or two of hers. It put me in the mood for poetry, I suppose, and I came to Goodreads to see what books she's written. From there, I searched our public library (and this NEVER happens. Okay, RARELY EVER happens) and they HAD like a few of her books. (98 percent of the books we get did not come from our library but our library's consortium. Thankful for the consortium; kind of sad fact about our library.) So I checked out this one. It was a moment, really. It was the first time in more than a year and a half that I had actually been allowed to GO INTO the library and look at the shelves and touch the book and take it to the person (behind the mask behind the shield behind the "window") and check out a book! Like I said, it was a moment! I got to be a patron! I ended up liking a handful of the poems in this book, two of which were written by the same author, Mackenzie Connellee. I wish I had previewed the book a second (I never do, but this time I wish I had) before delving in, because I would have loved reading about the authors and seeing their little face pictures (mugshots? what do you call those these days?) and reading their "about me" segments that were in the back of the book all along. I just didn't know they were there until the end. So now you know about them, if you're reading this review. Or maybe you're a previewer and you don't need my tip. I might even read another poetry book right away. I'll see. Maybe I'll even GO IN AGAIN and pick one out myself. Either way, I'll definitely write some more poetry pretty soon. I always do. Oh, and I liked the symbolism and the little "key" picture at the end of each poem. This sounds really silly, but it helped me know when the poem was done or when it continued onto the next page. But then again, that's not silly, because isn't that why they put the key there, really? I think it is. It works. So good job there, people.

[Danielle Palmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I flew through this book! Very accessible, many different perspectives included, as there are 25 different contributors. Definitely don’t feel this should be categorized as YA…just poetry - which can be for anyone, although there are some tough poems included in here regarding assault and death. I especially loved the blurbs at the end. And I liked Naomi’s anecdote about being better with words than math! It’s been over a decade since this anthology was published, hoping some of these 25 under 25 authors have continued with poetry!

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes poetry. I don't like poetry but yes to this:

...even when
the words grace me with their presence,
they don't always choose to step
delicately into the world, pink shoes
treading softly over the white horizon.
usually poetry slops lazily over the couch
of a page and dangles while I remove its muddy
shoes and rearrange the pillows, all the while
muttering something about Frost and how maybe
his comments against free verse were right
all along (poetry in rhyme always cleans up
after itself) although honestly, you haven't lived
until the homeless free-verse poem on your couch
decides to stay for a cup of tea and, if you're
lucky, lets you take notes on everything he says.

from "invitation" by Mackenzie Connellee, in Time You Let Me In

There's a sh!t-ton more of that where this comes from - meditations on the last photons from a dying star, the burning feeling of hiding and making out, joyrides and wine coolers, fitting in, learning, rebelling, parents, grandparents, and oh my god breathless love.

Here's another little bit:

as far back as I can remember
we've been pissed off,
the whole bloodline, just really pissed.

from "as far back as I can remember" by Jonah Ogles, in Time You Let Me In

If you could say "Good job!" in that delighted voice with that big smile you give a two-year-old who drew you a picture to a teenage or just-past-teenage poet (which you can't, not unless you want to hideously damage him or her), I would say "Good job!" to Lauren Eriks, who wrote:

I have bed knobs in my hands, portals,
doorways. I can leap over
buildings, baby, bouncing
through walls. I'm free as a
racing rubber ball. When I get lit
on the trail of your Camel cigarette,
you know I can break
every bottle, butt, bombshell around.

from "La Belle Dame Sans Merci" by Lauren Eriks, in Time You Let Me In.

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some poems were wonderful and would make me laugh out loud or cause my eyes to water or make me appreciate, again, how much I love cultural diversity. Some poems made me skip lines or quickly turn the page. But that seems to be the way with all poetry books.

My favorites:
Photons, by Nicole Guenther
Pupil, by Brianne Carpenter
The Indexer in Love, by Gray Emerson
Larry's Produce, by Michelle Brittan
Run, by Henry Milss
As far back as I can remember, by Jonah Ogles
kitchen witness, by Emma Shaw Crane
Living with a Bodhisattva Cat Is intimidating, by Margaret Bashaar
ode to poetry, by Matthew Baker

Living with a Bodhisattva Cat is Intimidating

The Bodhisattva Cat is, of course, vegan:
He will not eat the inexpensive dry food
I fed my last cat, who was unenlightened.

He is morally opposed to hunting,
compassionately watches moles skitter
across the basement floor.

The Bodhisattava Cat meditates for up to eighteen hours
a day,
gives impromptu dharma talks to squirrels perched
on the bird feeder outside my kitchen window.

The Bodhisattva Cat has boycotted the 2008 Olympics
in Beijing:
I read about the torch relay on Yahoo! News
and he looked at his paws.

He destroys all my knitting to teach me
about impermanence. - by, Margaret Bashaar

[Michael Young · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre: Poetry, Young Adult

Rating: ***
The poetry included in this collection captures true perspectives of young adults. From insights related to loss and grief to love and relationships, the poetry included in this collection is beautifully written and organized.

Summary:
This compilation of poetry from 26 (not 25) young authors shares varying voices, perspectives and insights from young writers. The central theme of the poetry focuses on the perspective of the young adult. The insights and stories included focus on the very experience of living as a young adult.

Main Characters:
Since this text is a collection of different poems and not a story, main characters of a 'story' are not found in this book. However, what we do have is 26 characters, writers sharing insights, experiences and stories of the young adult experience.

Key Issues:
Relationships, Choice, Loss

Other Interesting Information:
Sections of this text could be used with readers/students based on a wide variety of experiences. For example, "The Falling Man" by Tala Abu Rahmeh would be a great poem to use in connection with discussions about September 11th. Several other specific poems would provide avenues to use text for conversations about life experiences.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book includes inspirational poems from young poets under the age of 25. I chose this book because many poems I have been reading can be hard to understand, and I wanted to read good literature, that I could also understand. Reading from people near my age gives me a different feel than older poets. The poems seem relatable to you since they are written by people who are very much like you. One poet whose poems stuck out to me was Nichole Guenther poems. One of his poems asks the question "Wouldn't it be amazing to be the last bit of light from a collapsed star" That to me shows he is a very deep thinker, which makes his poems very creative. He also relates his brain to a church. From my understanding, he does this because it contains all his beliefs and communions. He also has a strong childhood background and has lived in a dugout in a stadium, which may give him a lot of inspiration for his poems. I was a little confused to why the title was called "Time You Let Me In". After thinking about it I think that the meaning is that young poets are underestimated, and this book clearly shows the talent of our future generation and that they should be acknowledged for their talent.

[Darien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Darien Munden
Poetry

This particular compilation of poems, hand selected by Naomi Shihab Nye,are all poems written by young adult poets. As the title suggests all of the poetry in this compilation was written when the poets were all under twenty-five years old. Most of the poetry is based on actual first-hand experiences the poets have had. Some of the poems are humorous, like "Death and Taxes," by Lauren Espinoza, others are a bit sad, even depressing, like "Protons," by Nicole Guenther. No matter your taste in poetry there's a little something for everyone in this book. I won't go about giving any medals, though. The poems are relatively short, the longest only covering about nine or ten stanzas at the most, and the authors themselves, as stated, are not very experienced. But if your looking for poetry that can put a smile on your face, help you to recall a distant memory, or even to help you cope with a somewhat frightening experience, these are for you!

[Maggie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Overall, this collection was disappointingly homogenous to me, both stylistically and in terms of the poets it included. This isn't representative of what poets under 25 are doing. There were a few excellent poems, but they were buried beneath many that read simply like undergrad workshop poems--not a lot of risks, but a lot of grandma poems. I don't think Nye did a particularly good job as editor, either. The order of the poems didn't add anything to the collection, and many of the contributors' notes came across as cute, which I don't think was very flattering to the writers, most of whom are still at an age where they're having to fight to be taken seriously as writers.

People who don't read a lot of poetry will probably enjoy this, but those who read poetry on a regular basis will wonder what else younger poets are capable of.

[dayshawna ㅤᵕ̈]

a very light and easy type of poetry to get sucked into. a quick one with a wide range of different styles of writing from various people. love that it’s tonally unbiased and not subjected to one person. you get to know each writer vaguely to reach a slight understanding of their feelings and mindset but not for long before you go to someone new, which is refreshing. it was nice for me, a poet and a poetry lover to see how so many poets differ and their stories on what they choose to write about and how they convey those thoughts, memories and feelings into words. it gives you a sense of freshness, and while some poets and poems hit me harder than others, all of it, essentially, was good.

[Taylor Estep · Rating 3 out of 5]

Time You Let Me In by Naomi Shiab Nye inlcudes poets that have all written pieces that have the same general idea of wanting something back from the past or wanting someone to let you in again. I enjoyed how all of the poems all had this general idea, but some of the authors I wasn't very interested in. I found myself liking a particular poem that is short, but sweet. "Yellow droplets have fallen to the city from the only sky a leaf has ever known. In my mothers garden, stands one such tree gifting her daughters strange name. But the Amal-taas outside is still bare. "Wait," Ami says, "Ours always blooms last." I found that throughout the poems I read my favorites we always the ones that were short but got their point accross. I only gave this three stars because there were some authors that I didn't really enjoy.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Naomi Shihab Nye’s comment in the afterward that introduces each of the contributors: “In school I was good with words and bad with numbers – that’s why there are 26 poets in this book, not 25. I loved them all and could hardly omit anyone after writing all the poets cheerily to say their poems were accepted! I would rather embrace my flaws. – N.S.N.” (2010, p. 225). These poems are vast in their subject, enormous in complexity, and encouraging about the depth of emotion & thought in youth.

[Andy Crane · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with any collection of poetry, there were some I enjoyed more than others. Taken as a whole, it was a solid collection. I do wonder about it being classified as young adult, though. (perhaps because all of the authors are under the age of 25?) It seemed more appropriate for someone in their early twenties than a teenager, but really any age group (except the very young) could and should read this book.

[Megan Carper · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my new favorite poetry collection. It made me cry multiple times and is something that I can see myself reading when I need a reminder that we are human, even if we act more like wild animals! Some of the poets/poems were better than others, but overall it was a fantastic read. I highly recommend it if you want something that will warm your heart.

[Margot MacKay · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m trying to read more poetry so I can find works to incorporate into my 11th grade English classes. This one sounding intriguing but had more of a focus on mortality and life events that will be beyond current 16- and 17-year olds, born in 2008 and 2009.

[Lesly Cruz · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was okay, it wasn't that good

[A E Fox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed most of the poems in here. The contributor bios were even fun to read. Might have to purchase this book as it has some new favorites in it for me.

[Kelsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Endearing and charming light read.

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful poetry collection!
I liked the bast majority of poets’ works but did not enjoy a few...authors.
I do think the authors’ bios were awesome!

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not a poetry scholar. If I like a poem it is because I like what it says, or I relate to it or I enjoy the word play. That said I found a few in this book I liked.

[Michele Benson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really young poets attempting poetry on serious subjects.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking for modern poems on the immigration experience to share with my seniors...there are three in here I can use...and some other amazing poems to write beside later.

[Stefanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty much entirely meh.

[Jody · Rating 4 out of 5]

Photons by Nicole Guenther was my favorite poem in this book.

[Manisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely, moving. Loved all the different perspectives and poets.

[Kate Steinheimer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never read poetry, so this was very different for me. A lot of great poems- I was surprised how many are about death.

[Mamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not good at reading poetry, and I am not good at taking books slowly. I am grateful to have read some of these poems, and some I couldn't understand for the life of me.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the variety of poems in this book.

[Sasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Most of these felt too angsty, though I loved the Carpenter poem "Pupil" about the 1985 Nat Geo Afghan girl cover.

[Tara Makhmali · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are so many wonderful pieces in this compilation of poems that blew me away. This is a portion of a poem called, “invitation” by Mackenzie Connelle, just to give you a quick bite …

“usually poetry slops lazily over the couch
of a page and dangles while i remove it’s muddy
shoes and rearrange pillows, all the while
muttering something about Frost and how maybe his comments against free verse were right
all along (poetry in rhyme always cleans up
after itself) although honestly, you haven’t lived
until the homeless free-verse poem on your couch
decides to stay for a cup of tea and, if you’re
lucky, lets you take notes on everything he says”