Street Love

A very good poem that just drew me in and captured me. This is the story of a teenage girl from the streets of Harlem whose mom goes to jail for drug dealing and her boyfriend, a young middle class guy with a promising future.

They seem star-crossed, but I had to read to the end to see what happens to them. Were they truly doomed?

I'd have too many spoilers to discuss parts I really liked. I did like it when she tells her guy she'd not some fantasy princess he dreamed up in his head; she's a real girl with a real past. (And that's terribly paraphrased.)

This slim volume, written in free verse, tells the story of Damien and Junice, two Harlem teenagers who fall in love despite all the forces against them. Junice’s mother has just been sentenced to twenty-five years in prison for possession and distribution of drugs, and she has no one to look after her and her nine-year-old sister, Melissa. Damien’s mother and father are proud of his accomplishments, including acceptance to Brown, but they want no part of Junice or her troubles. How the two lovers meet, interact, and ultimately decide their fate unfolds in short poems written from multiple points of view. Sometimes we get glimpses into Damien’s thoughts, other times Junice’s, the mothers’, and even the social worker assigned show more to Junice’s case. Myers displays his considerable talents through these vignettes as each poetic voice is at once unique and in harmony with the other poems.

Both Damien and Junice are strong characters. Damien is thoughtful and kind, while Junice refuses to let her situation define her. She even tells Damien at one point, “I am only what you see, this stick/Of a woman trying to make enough magic/To negotiate the shadows of these streets...My life is not packaged” (109). The adult characters get less sympathetic portrayals; though they all have their reasons for wanting to keep Damien and Junice apart, their cynicism reveals their powerlessness.

Students will enjoy the gritty setting, which gets plenty of loving description by Myers. However, they may find the format hard to follow. It would be best to teach this novel by having students actually read it aloud and act it out, so that they have concrete movements to convey what is at times rather abstract prose. While there is no cussing, mature content makes this a better pick for ages 14 and up. show less

I loved Street Love; let me count the ways:
Its pentameter of the street raps Shakespearean
Its characters who are drawn with richness and complexity
Its plot which keeps you guessing and turning the pages
Its writing’s preciseness and sparity
Its terrible beauty in evoking the diversity of life in the “ghetto”
This book paired with Romeo and Juliet would make an excellent teaching unit ; the possibilities for comparative analysis are almost countless, and it would really open students’ eyes to the timelessness of Shakespeare despite his challenging prose.

Walter Dean Myers' Sweet Love received the ALA's Best YA Book Award for 2007, and rightly so. His tale of young romance in the big city and lyrical prose style is of such exceptional quality, it should be required reading on a unit of poetry. After reading his book, the poetry of Shakespeare will take on a whole new meaning. It took a while to adapt to the hip hop, street languages verse, until, chapter after chapter, Myers alliterations and cadenced pairing become music to the ear. The fluid combination of prose and poetry thrives on teens issues of inner city violence and territory, the continual degradation of young black women, and protective black mothers who want their bright sons to succeed.

All of these issues weigh heavy on the show more shoulders and hearts of the two teenagers, Damien and Junice and their friends and families. Each short chapter has a multivoiced perspective of how these issues are dealt with by the characters. This approach allows the reader to see the strengths and weaknesses of these young people, and how they cope with the struggles of life in the inner city and forbidden love.

Myers created an ending that could lead to a sequel: an ending where Damien makes a decision based more on his emotional immaturity and heartstrings than as the rationale goal oriented youth he was before meeting Junice. Maybe there is more in store for their lives in the music capital of the south? show less

Beautiful, heart-wrenching...I LOVE this book! It's a modern Romeo and Juliet (with a happier ending) set in Harlem and testifies to the strength of certain youth in difficult situations.

Reviewed by Karin Perry for TeensReadToo.com

Walter Dean Myers has created a captivating tale of new love on the tough streets of New York City. Damien is a smart young man who is going places. He has already been accepted into Brown University and looks toward the future. His parents have sacrificed in order to provide him with a stable, loving, and supportive environment. His mother is diligent when it comes to his life. She doesn't want to him to fall prey to manipulating girls looking for a way out of their meaningless and disappointing lives.

Junice is a tall, beautiful girl with a lot on her plate. Her mother has just been sent to prison for twenty-five years for drug possession and now lives with her forgetful grandmother and show more younger sister. The responsibility of keeping everyone together falls on Junice. The Department of Human Services has reviewed their situation and found that the grandmother isn't well enough to care for the girls and plans to send them into the system--saying they'll try to keep Junice and her sister, Melissa, together, but that they can't promise anything.

When Damien sees Junice walking down the street one day he becomes entranced. Feelings swell in his chest and he knows he has changed. He is quickly pulled into the chaos that is Junice's life and wants to do whatever he can to help her. Against the wishes of his parents, he continues a relationship with her that takes him down a road -- quite literally -- that he would never have taken if Junice hadn't come into his life.

Walter Dean Myers' use of a hip-hop style combined with the short poems that tie this story together is addictive. The multi-voiced narration gives the reader the perspectives of all of the characters that are involved in this heartbreaking tale. Once you start reading, you'll want to keep going until you find out how Junice and Damien's story ends -- or, we hope, at least the first chapter of a longer story. show less

Walter Dean Myers has created a captivating tale of new love on the tough streets of New York City. Damien is a smart young man who is going places. He has already been accepted into Brown University and looks toward the future. His parents have sacrificed in order to provide him with a stable, loving, and supportive environment. His mother is diligent when it comes to his life. She doesn't want to him to fall prey to manipulating girls looking for a way out of their meaningless and disappointing lives. Junice is a tall, beautiful girl with a lot on her plate. Her mother has just been sent to prison for twenty-five years for drug possession and now lives with her forgetful grandmother and younger sister. The responsibility of keeping show more everyone together falls on Junice. The Department of Human Services has reviewed their situation and found that the grandmother isn't well enough to care for the girls and plan to send them into the system saying they'll try to keep Junice and her sister Melissa together, but they can't promise anything. When Damien sees Junice walking down the street one day he becomes entranced. Feelings swell in his chest and he knows he has changed. He is quickly pulled into the chaos that is Junice's life and wants to do whatever he can to help her. Against the wishes of his parents he continues a relationship with her that takes him down a road – quite literally – that he would never have taken if Junice hadn't come into his life. Walter Dean Myers use of Hip-Hop style combined with the short poems that tie this story together is addictive. The multi-voiced narration gives the reader the perspectives of all the characters that are involved in this heartbreaking tale. Once you start reading you'll want to keep going until you find out how Junice and Damien's story ends – or at least the first chapter of a long story, we hope. show less