Teen Angst: a Celebration of Really Bad Poetry Edited by Sarah Bynoe 811.008 TEEN

The first collection of the best (meaning worst, but totally in a good way) of poems submitted to teenangstpoetry.com. Poems fall under headings like "I will never love again" Poems, I am Alone--an no one understands my pain Poems, Life Sucks and I Want to Die Poems, and others. A collection of staggeringly bad poetry for every teen that angsts or the former sad, mad, head-over-heels-in love, or whatever other reason we have to write poems teen in all of us.

Right off the bat I want to add the disclaimer that I personally have NEVER written BAD POETRY and anybody claiming otherwise is clearly lying and their 'evidence' is obvious forgeries. That being said I love poetry and think absolutely everyone should read it and try to write it at least once, so this book is one of my favorites. It has some painfully bad poems that become painfully funny when read out loud and is in an odd way very encouraging. It shows that the pains and toils of adolescence are shared by many and that creativity can help us survive it. It also shows that no matter how bad your poems or bad your pain is one day you can look back and laugh at it. And any book that reminds us of that is pretty awesome. If you like poems and are looking for a laugh, this is a great read.

How Beautiful the Ordinary: Twelve Stories of Identity edited by Michael Cart YP FIC HOW

How Beautiful the Ordinary is a collection of twelve stories about struggles of identity for gay, lesbian and transgender teens. It is told through a variety of formats including comics, poem, and short stories. The title refers to how the struggles and problems gay, lesbian, and transgender teens go through are very similar to problems everyone experiences. These stories show that the ordinary truly is beautiful and far more complicated than we think.

This is a really strong collection of stories from some of the best Young Adult writers. All the stories deal with coming to terms with identity and issues such as love, sex, guilt, and fear. The themes of these stories are universal and can be understood by all teens or any former teens. My favorite were Dear Lang and My Life as a Dog. Dear Lang is in the form of a letter from a mother that has had her daughter hidden from her for 14 years and is legally powerless to do anything about. My Life as a Dog is about a young man named Noah in a coma imagining his life as a dog’s. It is cleverly told through the main character’s view as a dog alternated by little scenes in the format of a script in Noah’s hospital room. All the stories show a different facet of life and different perspectives. This is a good read for just about anyone that likes stories about teens learning about themselves regardless of the reader's gender or orientation.

Legacy by Tom Sniegoski YP FIC SNIEGOSK

Lucas is an ordinary teenager that wants an ordinary life. He lives in a small town, works at the garage, and doesn’t see any other future for himself. Then his deadbeat dad shows up and tells him that he’s a superhero named The Raptor and wants Lucas to take his place. Now Lucas’s life isn’t so ordinary. After he turns his father down his home is attacked and Lucas decides he must seek justice, but he soon finds his father isn’t as noble as he seems. Lucas must make the ultimate choice between loyalty and honor.

Legacy is a fast, gritty, and funny book. If you like super hero stories that look at what it means to be a super hero in the real world you should also check out the graphic novel Watchmen by Alan Moore YP FIC MOORE, the novel Dull Boy by Sarah Cross YP FIC CROSS , or the novel Hero by Perry Moore YP FIC MOORE.

Metamorphosis: Junior Year by Betsy Franco YP FIC FRANCO

Metamorphosis: Junior Year by Betsy Franco tells the story of young teen named Ovid and how he uses art to describe and survive the perils of high school. Ovid is named after the famous Roman poet Ovid that wrote Metamorphoses.

A metamorphosis is a complete change from one form of life to another. Which is what high school is pretty much all about. Ovid is inspired by his namesake to envision himself and his friends as creatures of myth going through fantastical changes through poems and drawings. The art is by the author’s son Tom Franco and is truly unique and very cool. Ovid writes biting and quirky poems that describe his friends and their hidden pains until he finally can bring himself to confront his own troubles. Metamorphosis is a very clever work that looks at how art can help us come to terms with the world around us. Ovid’s blend of ancient myths and modern pop culture is fresh and authentic. A good read for anyone that is or has dealt with the Epic Struggle that is growing up.

If the myths and creatures in Metamorphosis: Junior Year grab you then you should definitely read Metamorphoses by Ovid (the real one) call number 873.01 OVID.

Destroy All Cars by Blake Nelson

James Hoff is an angst-ridden high school student, whose environmental streak is a little radical for most. Well, it might be if he actually did anything for environmental causes instead of railing against them in his English compositions and his blog. Blake Nelson’s new book, Destroy All Cars, opens with a paper written by Hoff about cars and how they are “completely screwing over the planet.” The story is told through an epistolary format and reads quickly.

According to a recent interview with the author featured on the blog Abe Lincoln’s Hat, the lead character is loosely based on Nelson when he was in high school. Nelson went through a revolutionary phase, where he read The Communist Manifesto, drank espresso at the library, and crushed on artsy girls. However, there is more to Hoff’s character than a teen boy full of frustration. Like many teens James recognizes the flaws in the world and how adults tend to ignore them. There is a helplessness to Hoff because although he sees the problems he not necessarily in a place to provide solutions.

Instead of working to evoke change, James complains- and he is very good at it. In addition to complaining about cars and consumerism he also finds issue with his activist ex-girlfriend, Sadie, who he feels tries to evoke change by using the system. James thinks the system is broken, and offers little solution to solving problems. It’s not until Sadie gets him involved with one of her system-based do-gooder petition projects that he realizes there are proactive ways to work toward establishing environmental change. It also changes his perspective of Sadie, who seems pretty awesome.

Other books by Blake Nelson available at the Library: Girl, They Came from Below, Paranoid Park, Gender Blender, Prom Anonymous, Rock Star Superstar, and The New Rules of High School

If you like Destroy All Cars, you might want to pick up Jennifer Cowan’s first novel, Earthgirl. It is currently available in the New Books area of the library.