Helium is another title to add to the modern school of poetry. It's an analysis of what makes up a young person, from personal relationships to the poet's larger role in society. It tells stories through simple language and doesn't muddy the waters with hidden meanings or complicated metaphors. It tells it like it is, and gets to the point where it needs to.

There's a vast difference when reading the first half of the collection and the second. The more personal poems that deal with love and personal relationships really didn't resonate with me. It was sort of the same old lamenting that poets often grow out of. However, the second half of the poems that speak more to race, class, and what it's like to live today with a dozen labels on you before you utter a word does make more of an impact when reading it--enough to want to see more from this poet in the future.

Rudy Francisco really has mastery of the magic of poetry. His imagery is interesting, fresh, beautiful, and startling when it needs to be. I enjoyed nearly every poem in this collection and found the presentation compelling even when some poems dealt with subject matter that I didn't relate to.

Helium is the first poetry collection I read from Rudy Francisco. His poetry reminds me of Rupi Kaur’s, but from a male perspective. Rudy sheds light on sensitive and important topics such as gender, politics, race, and social issues in his powerful and emotional raw poetry. I wasn’t too fond of the beginning of his poetry collection which discusses about past love and depression. Those poems felt weak and trite. However, as the book progresses, his poems become deeper and more progressive. A few of my favorite poems from this collection are Sinking, Adrenaline Rush, Accent, and Mercy. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of Rupi Kaur or is interested in reading poetry about social issues and race.

This book is a poetry book so it doesn't really have a story to it just a compilation of poems by
the author Rudy Francisco. I was thrilled because I've read some of his work before and forgot
about him. He is fantastic and this book did not disappoint. His metaphors are just beautiful and make you feel something inside that not a lot of poetry can do I find. Most of his poems are short and to the point so they don't lose you along the way. If your a poetry fan this book is one that you must read. I've read a few and none of them are better than this one. This is one of those books that you will read once and put down, then the next few days will read again because it just calls to you. The best part was I really felt like I was part of his world reading all of the emotions that he's put into his work. I feel that no matter how many time I read this book it will always beg to be read again.

I needed to read some poetry for a reading challenge I'm taking part in this year, and was drawn to this collection because of the cover! And that way of choosing books has served me well yet again, as I found this to be a stunning, honest and powerful collection of poems by a man I'd only seen clips off via Button Poetry online.

He has an amazing way with words and covers a wide range of subjects from depression to racism, to love to hate, and hope and despair. And with some poems he only needs 13 words to convey such insight and impact and I found myself re-reading some as they just struck me as so engaging.

There were poems that were short and snappy, alongside those that went more in depth into a wide range of emotions and it has definitely made me more interested in the new world of poetry and will be searching out more to read in the future - I just hope they're all as good as this!!

Helium
by Rudy Francisco
Button Poetry

Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles
Multicultural Interest , Poetry
Pub Date 28 Nov 2017


I am reviewing a copy of Helium through Button Poetry (Independent Book Publishers Association) and Netgalley:


Ruby Francisco is an internet sensation and Helium is her first collection of published poetry, the poems in this book speak of culture.


Ruby Francisco has traveled both the country and the world, wowing crowds, and his poetry and quotes have been shared countless times.



I give Helium five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

Helium is such a raw, honest, and emotional ride for the reader, but definitely worth it. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this collection. It was my introduction to Rudy Francisco, and I was pleasantly surprised. I did not imagine it would be so thought-provoking, giving me so many different "feels." I connected with his thoughts of love lost and longing in ways I wasn't expecting. I admire the way he was able to weave these difficult feelings into such profound poetry. I highly recommend this read to all lovers of modern poetry and can't wait to read more from him.

Thank you to Button Poetry and Netgalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy of "Helium" in exchange for an honest review.

The best collection of poetry, unexpected, moving, and unique, that I’ve read in a long time. I want a copy for myself, and several for my friends. I want to return to these frequently, These poems are fantastic and fresh and clear and I highly recommend this collection.

I've been a fan of Rudy Francisco since the first time I heard his spoken word about ~10 years ago. From the moment he spoke his first sentence, my ears were enamored. Something about the rhythm and cadence just makes his poems come to life before your eyes. His words fill the room, tiptoeing around and then melodically dancing until the words grow so big they fill the room and you're left gasping for air.

Being extremely familiar with his work I wondered if that same emotion would translate into print.

I will admit, some of the power behind his words is lost when just sprawled across a page, or in my case, a kindle. I feel that with an actual book there is a bit more editing involved. The same poem, both written and spoken are two completely different beasts.

The book is a light read and perfect for a gift. Ten years ago when I first discovered Rudy's work, this book would have been great. Social media wasn't as prevalent in everyone's lives then and every single moment wasn't documented. This collection of poems would have been perfect to go back, re-read and dissect each word. Now, all it takes is a quick google search to relive the raw emotions behind each poem.

My advice for anyone unfamiliar with Rudy, read Helium first, and then google him. You won't be disappointed.

This is an incredibly beautiful, thoughtful and emotional collection of poetry. I found so much of what was on the page speaking to me. Absolutely wonderful and I'd highly recommend it.

This is a beautiful and unexpected collection of verse. Every page was a pleasant surprise. I started highlighting passages that really struck me and soon discovered that I had highlighted nearly the entire book. Well worth a read, especially for folks who claim they don't "get" poetry.

I recieved a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest review.

This collection is honest, raw and beautiful. This book is an experience.
My favorite piece is "My Honest Poem".

Ok so I'm a newbie when it comes to poetry having only read Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur before this collection so can honestly say I don't have much to compare to but I really liked this collection of poems by Rudy Francisco having never heard of him before.

I thought the poems were raw, relatable and really packed a punch. I will most definitely re-read them and feel that by doing so I will get something different from them again.

I will admit that some of the poems did go over my head a bit but I think poetry will always be like that for me and hopefully the more I read them the more I will understand!

I would definitely recommend this collection and will certainly be looking for this author's future work.

I received this book free of charge from the publisher in return for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

This collection of poems by Rudy Francisco is both beautiful and thought provoking. His insightful creations are heart breaking, yet honest. His descriptions of anxiety and self-esteem will be appreciated by many. 'Helium' would be a great text for high school students.

What a great read, it was one of those things I had to read out loud to myself to give it the depth it deserved and to feel the proper weight of it. Can’t recommend it enough and looking forward to more work by the artist.

I started out really enjoying the cleverness of these poems, but a little of them goes a long way, and this book ends up having far too many cliched, tired poems. Very disappointing.

Poetry is like a well-written book. Some prefer thrillers, some prefer romance. Helium is a welcome combination of both.

The book has four parts that try to take you through love, loss, America, and introduce you to Rudy. Raw. Happy. Sad. Rudy. While it’s difficult to stun with every line and every page, Francisco’s work is a welcome change from the current trend of prose. Some poems will make you think, some make you indifferent. But all of them will make you feel something.

Helium
Image – Button Poetry

My favourite out the entire collection is titled ‘Water’. I am yet to read a poem as stunning as that this year. Dive into the book an swim in it slowly. Let the words and pages take you on a journey.

If you’re in a hurry, let this book slow you down, let it make you rethink. Pick up this book and gift it yourself and someone you l

Beautiful pieces of poetry. The poems are very touching. They bring so many emotions to live.

Reflections on race, gender, mental illness — and love, naturally!

Your God stole my God’s identity.
So next time you bend your knees,
next time you bow your head
I want you to tell your God
that my God is looking for him.
(“To the Man Standing on the Corner Holding the Sign That Said ‘God Hates Gays'”)

Once, a friend of a friend asked me
why there aren’t more black people in the X Games
and I said, “You don’t get it.”
Being black is one of the most extreme sports in America.
(“Adrenaline Rush”)

Some days I forget that my skin
is not a panic room.
(“My Honest Poem”)

###

The first poem in HELIUM, “Water,” took my breath away – and more or less set the tone for the entire volume.

I have a terrible time reviewing poetry; I can’t tell you whether a poem is “good,” technically speaking, only if I liked it. Even then I fear I’m a poor barometer, since I’m as likely to understand it as not.

But Rudy Francisco’s poetry is accessible AF. Also daring, insightful, passionate, and unfiltered. I especially adore the poems that tackle mental illness – which is no surprise, as I struggle with anxiety and depression myself, and thus find this genre incredibly relatable and applicable to my own life.

Many of these pieces appear in Parts I and II; but it’s those poems centered on social justice issues (Part III) that really stunned me speechless. “Adrenaline Rush,” “Rifle II,” “To the Man Standing on the Corner Holding the Sign That Said ‘God Hates Gays'” — these poems will stick with me long after HELIUM claims its permanent home on my bookshelves. Not that it will stay there indefinitely: this is a book I’m likely to revisit again in the future.

Though Francisco is at his best when writing about social justice issues – toxic masculinity, misogyny, religious intolerance, art as resistance, police brutality, etc. – I cared less for his love poems. Though I suppose it could just be the jaded, 39-year-old widow in me silently screaming, “Please don’t be a love poet!”

I also actively disliked “Complainers” (to paraphrase: if you’ve never had to saw your own arm off with a rusty butterknife, stfu!), which is kind of a bummer: the second-to-last poem in the book, it left a bitter taste in my mouth.

I rarely read physical books anymore – I’m more an ebook kind of gal – but I found the font a little on the small side, and unnecessarily so, since many of the pages are dominated by white space. Borderline hard-to-read for my nearly middle-aged eyes.
These are all fairly minor complaints, though, given the sheer genius and raw emotion embodied in HELIUM.


Contents

I
Water
Good Morning
Ouch
Page
Drive
Horizon
Instructions
My Honest Poem
Machine
Correctly
12 am
Sip
Petal
To the Girl Who Works at Starbucks…
Alternatives to “Bae”
If I Was a Love Poet
Again

II
Sinking
When People Ask How I’m Doing
Mess
Vanish
Why Did You Leave?
Scars
Museum
To the Random Dude…
Haunted
How Did You Lose Her?
Chameleon
Windows and Mirrors
Lopsided
To You
To Him
And Then After

III
Waves
Skin II
Adrenaline Rush
Accent
98
Meal
Margin
Liberty
To the Man Standing on the Corner Holding the Sign That Said “God Hates Gays”
Brother
Sister
Rifle II
Simeona
In the Voice of Hip Hop
I Bet the Trees Are Thinking
Roulette
Mercy

IV
Forgiveness
Capacity
Strength
Cookout
Welcome
Silence
Complainers
Yes

I thoroughly enjoyed "Helium" by Rudy Francisco! His poetry is concise, powerful, personal, political, witty, truthful, all in one. What a talented guy!!

I would definitely recommend this book to others and look forward to reading more from this author.

Many, many thanks to NetGalley and Button Poetry - this never would've hit my radar without you!