Helium

I fell in love with this author when I watched him tel his story on a Facebook video. I was so in love that I bought his book without any hesitation. Now, I am heart broken because I’ve already finished reading the book that sounds almost like my life story. If I had to write my thoughts, it would probably be this. The shortest $12 book I’ve ever bought, but every word is priceless.
-Housewife

Call me an @$$hole or ignorant or whatever you want, but I thought this work was garbage... Read through the first dozen and immediately wished I could have the last 15 minutes back. Not sure what people see here..

Disappointed in this poem book. Im sure Rudy say it in a great voice and all.
Imho the book is blah and less than what ive even expected. Words thrown over everywhere in the book. No correlation with eachother. Scrambled wordsand thoughts..

Its his voice and way of saying it that makes it better. Other than that its sh!t honestly

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!

Helium is a mix of personal, political, love and cultural poetry. Rudy Francisco shares his thoughts and feelings in a stunning open, honest and sometimes raw manner. He has a breathtaking way with words that kept blowing me away. I was impressed by his analogies, for me they were the most striking aspect of his poems. He has an impressive ability to compare, voice his opinions and show his emotions with clarity while adding an abundance of beauty in the process. His poems give his readers a fascinating glance into his world and I'm grateful I had the chance to experience this.

Rudy Francisco skillfully plays with rhythm. Every time he gets it exactly right, which gives his poems plenty of strength. He makes sure the reader understands the message and is being spellbound by the way he delivers it at the same time. Helium is a gorgeous collection of poems, it contains small masterpieces that can and should be read again and again. I highly recommend this fantastic work of art.

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.

I'm a major fan of Button Poetry and their authors, Rudy Francisco's Helium proved to be another substantive collection from them. The first poem was a brief taste of some of the important issues this collection would touch upon. that would come. Francisco's poems were strongest when discussing depression, race, and toxic masculinity. The starting romantic poems were sweet and not very filling but subsequent sections led to deeper and more moving poems. The only place where I felt he truly lost me was Complainers because of its tough love message that did not make room for my experience as a disabled woman. However, the other references to depression and life's difficulties had heart so it was just a brief disappointment amongst a number of more nuanced poems.

Helium is a very personal and raw collection of poetry. There are poems about racism, relationships, love, patriarchy, toxic masculinity... Many different topics but they are all delivered with honest and amazing voice.

I found very heartwarming poems that I will read many times, poems that can't forget because they were eye-opening and breathtaking. Of course, there were poems I didn't like but at the end, they were the minority.

I definitely recommend Helium if you like contemporary poetry.

Hello there! It’s me, Chronically-Late-to-the-Party. This is what I get for not keeping up with the poetry circuit, I suppose. Helium popped up in my GR updates feed with a cover that made me look twice, and an endorsement in the review that had me kicking up a trail of dust in my fast-track to the library. It’s just as good as promised.

Rudy Francisco’s work is clear and incisive. He wields his words like razor blades, cutting away to the core of all those moments in our lives that catch the light and say “Here I am. This is true. Notice me.”

This is poetry that’s meant to be read out loud. Take your time. Savor it. It’s kind of like a breath-mint for society’s ills. Or maybe just a well-deserved slap. Depends on the poem.

Alright, I’ll stop torturing you with bad similes. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go buy a copy of this for myself.

{This Review was Originally Posted to Goodreads on 2018.05.30}

There were about a handful of poems that were very eye opening and thought provoking.

I would say that more often there were a lot of "in between" poems; not great but not bad.

There were also a few I did not connect to or find emotion in.

But that doesn't mean you won't.

Would I read it again? No.
Do I feel like I wasted my time in doing so? No.

The topics of this book, [racism, sexism, inequalities, family] is so incredibly relevant, especially as it refers to African-American men. I love the self-evaluation, the acknowledgments of the faults and transgressions inflicted [mostly on women] as much as the ones suffered. There is a lot of raw and dark truth but so much love and beauty too, especially around family.

I want to start and say that I’m not a huge fan of poetry but I want to be. I picked this up because a friend told me the author is one of her favorite modern poets. I’m so glad I did. The writing makes me want to save some of the lines in my heart and always remember them. It feels important, the way this author writes, and is something I will not forget. I don’t know if I’m a huge fan of poetry yet, but I’m a fan of this author and will keep paying attention to the lines he writes for a long time yet.

Rudy has an exceptional way of tying together poems about life, love, and race. I’d watched performances of several of his poems before I read the book and it was just as magical to read them as it was to hear them performed. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book, despite already being excited to read it before I received a free digital galley from the publisher.

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".

My favorite 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 love

Relatable, humorous at times, and touching on world issues to every-day experiences, this book inspires reflection and introspection. I also thoroughly enjoyed the author’s beautiful, down-to-earth writing style, which often draws on his own personal experiences.

Rudy is a spoken-word poet so, as amazing as his work is on the page, you don't get the full impact without hearing his delivery. He has a very specific style so, once you watch a few clips online, you will recognize it in the poems as you read them. He is a gifted artist.

My favorite 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 love