In her introduction to this volume of found poems, editor Georgia Heard writes, “Poetry is everywhere—if we only look at the world with our poet’s eyes.” Her challenge to poets: create poems from existing text found in any source other than poetry. The result: poems from moments and sources that permeate everyday life. Poems were found in posts on Facebook or Twitter and the promises on a box of detergent; coaxed from the signs in a hardware store; and composed from the titles of paintings by Van Gogh. The poet’s job was to discover, and to shape and to frame the found words, often with a title that gives weight and meaning and context, as in “Pep Talk,” a poem found by Janet Wong on a box of OxiClean detergent: “Keep cool. / See a brighter solution. / Maintain freshness. / Boost your power!” These found poems invite young readers to consider the words they see and hear with a mind open to poetic possibilities. (Ages 8–11)

Twitter feeds, school notes, advertisements, street signs--find poetry in the unlikely places with thirty comtemporary poets.

Imagine picking up a scrap of paper off the floor or reading a sign at a gas station or looking at graffiti on the subway and finding poetry in these words. The literary equivalent of a collage, found poems take existing text, reorder and refashion it, and present it as a poem. Youthful, urban, and ironic, this energetic and surprising poetic form demonstrates the beauty of everyday words and will inspire young poets to find their own poetry.

Find your own poems with Georgia Heard's The Arrow Finds Its Mark as your guide.