Teen Angst

Book excerpt: Teen Angst: A Celebration of Really Bad Poetry is the first, the best, and the biggest collection of teen angst poetry ever to be published. Inspired by the popularity of her interactive website, editor Sara Bynoe has compiled the definitive teen angst reader. Divided into 12 categories, including I am Alone and No One Understands My Pain and Obvious Metaphors, this book is for anyone who has ever written truly terrible, meditative, or self-indulgent poetry. Actually, this book is for anyone who survived being a teenager. All of the poets featured in this collection are now adults, living happy, angst-free lives. However, for this special book, they are willing to reveal excerpts from their old tattered notebooks or leather bound journals. Along with the poems, each poet has included a short introduction, giving background information for each work. As Sara Bynoe says, looking back on teen angst poetry brings people together in a "poetry reading meets stand-up comedy meets AA" sort of way.