Street Love by Walter Dean Myers

Street Love by Walter Dean Myers

Street Love published by Amistad, 2006

Street Love is a modern take on the Shakespearean classic Romeo and Juliet.  Narrated in flowing free verse poetry, Street Love follows the romance of Damien and Janice, two teens with seemingly nothing in common.  For Damien, the sky is the limit.  He is a star athlete who also shines in the classroom.  The prestigious Brown University and the American Dream seem to be foregone conclusions.  All of this is made possible by his parents’ support.  Janice’s life could not be more different.  Her mother is serving a twenty five year sentence for possessing drugs which leaves Janice to care for her younger sister and her aging grandmother.  Janice’s life seems to be just another chapter in a never ending cycle of poverty and general familial turmoil.  Her father, like her grandfather before him, is nowhere to be seen.  Janice catches    

Damien’s eye and their unlikely romance struggles to remain airborne.  Will they succeed against all odds? 

Myers’ Street Love is without a doubt a masterpiece.  Myers’ use of poetry as a narrative technique is uncannily accessible for any reader and seems to pull you into the story.  Street Love would be an excellent way to introduce students to poetry as a narrative model for middle school students.  Myers’, as usual, is unafraid to approach tough real life issues like drug abuse and poverty while still making the book appropriate for middle school readers.   I would definitely teach this book in my classroom.  The educational potential is simply astounding.  Tough cultural, social, and economic themes coupled with an engaging but also unique style make this book a no brainer for any middle school classroom.