What floats into your mind when you hear the word "poetry?" Is it images of your high school English teacher forcing you to recite "The Road Less Traveled" in front of your entire class, or being tested on how well you can analyze the poetry of W.B. Yeats? It's no secret that a large number of students associate poetry with anxiety, dread, or some variation of those feelings because they still associate it with old books and boring stanzas. This is heartbreaking, however, because it is actually a beautiful art form that is powerful and often more brief than a longer piece of prose. That being said, there are some poets who are revolutionizing the way that our generation views poetry, and this National Poetry is the ideal time to get started on reading some of their work!
1. Lang Leav. Lang Leav's first book, Love and Misadventure, which was published in 2013, included poems that spoke frankly about love, heartbreak, and beyond. Since, she has gone on to publish three other books, and her fifth, Sad Girls, debuts at the end of this May. One of the aspects of her writing that has resulted in Lang's widespread popularity amongst our generation (admittedly most of her readers are female, but guys could definitely enjoy her work as well), is because of the fact that Lang's writing is easy to read and her pieces are short, yet still strikingly poetic, beautiful, and deep. Check out her beautiful piece "New Beginnings" below.
2. Sarah Kay. A bit different than Lang Leav, Sarah Kay is a spoken word poet, meaning that the poems are performed by the artist herself instead of read in a usual fashion. Poetry is meant to be read out loud, and Sarah Kay does just that. She writes honestly about love, growing up, heartbreak, and her hopes and fears. Check out her performance of "Postcards," or "If I Should Have a Daughter." They're absolutely stunning!
3. Christopher Poindexter. Another amazing poet whose poems are comprehensible, but also really make you think! One thing that's fascinating about his poems is, similar to Lang Leav, they really are remarkably brief, yet convey intense emotion in such few words. Wow!
4. Rupi Kaur. Chances are you've seen Rupi's debut poetry book, Milk and Honey, on your Instagram feed. And with good reason. The poems in this book are must-reads, no matter who you are. They deal with the topics of love, self discovery, self love, rebuilding, heartbreak, and coming of age, as well as femininity. I can't stress this enough: get your hands on this book. If you weren't a fan of the old-fashioned poetry that's pages and pages long, has no pictures, and is overall difficult to struggle through, this poetry will be refreshing. It has photos and essentially none of the poems in the book are longer than a page long. And it's brilliant.
5. R.M. Drake. I love this poet because he challenges what you'd typically call "poetry" and makes it new for this generation. His poems are typically short, sentence-like snippets that are thoughtful and beautiful. His writing is shockingly concrete but also lyrical; something that's hard to come by, but very distinctive. Follow him on Instagram for a taste of what his poetry is like!
6. Mary Oliver. A bit different than the rest of the poets on this list who are typically younger, Mary Oliver is a legend. At 81 years old, she's by far had the most experience out of anyone on this list, but her poems are still relevant and poignant. Furthermore, they aren't too difficult to read or comprehend, which is definitely a draw for younger readers, but they're still interesting and offer a different perspective. Perhaps one of her best poems (in my opinion) is one called "The Journey" that would surely benefit all teenagers and young adults to read because it emphasizes the fact that you have to live for yourself first.
7. Tyler Knott Gregson. Last, but not least! Tyler Knott Gregson is a wonderful writer, and usually writes on the topic of love. There's something for everyone, however, under that umbrella of a topic, so be sure to check out his work. Simple yet lyrical, his words make an impression. You can learn more about him on his website and read some of his work there!
There you have it: seven poets for our generation! Happy reading, and happy National Poetry Month!
