K – 12th grade
(Book reviewed by Arlyn Miller, founder and director)

This book is a “must have” for anyone working with young people and poetry. So much of the poetry we share with our students has been written by “professional poets” - or in any case, adults. Even if kids like these poems and feel inspired by them, they often feel intimidated and inadequate as they try to emulate them. With Salting the Ocean, we can say to kids, “here’s what people your age have written.” Not only will kids and teens be able to relate to the voice and subjects of the poems, they may well feel that they themselves can achieve such craftsmanship. That the poems in this collection don’t identify the ages or grade levels of the poets, does not for me detract from its value, though it sometimes frustrates my students.

As Nye notes in an introduction, “'How should we use poetry?' people sometimes ask me. Read it! Share it with one another! …. We 'use poetry' to restore us to feeling, revitalize our own speech, awaken empathy."

The 100 poems in this book by 100 young poets do just that.