Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced readers copy. All opinions are honest and my own.

I think it’s impossible to dive into a book of poetry and expect every piece to resonate with you. With Helium, it took me a while to warm up to it. The first few pieces revolved around the author’s perception of love and his relationship experiences, which I couldn’t really connect with in a meaningful way. I think it’s mainly because of my own preferences — simply put, I think literature is already oversaturated with poems about love and heartbreak, so I don’t have the stomach to fully appreciate them. However, as the pieces became more reflective of his struggles as a person of color and as a person facing deteriorating mental health, my reading experience with Helium drastically improved.

After reading this book, I searched for Rudy Francisco’s live performances online. Personally, I think his works are better delivered orally, instead of in the written word. Watching his live performances made me realize that some of the essence and power behind his words were lost in the process of transferring them into book form, which is a shame. But I think this unavoidably happens to all spoken word artists who try to publish their poetry.

Nonetheless, despite my rocky start, I really enjoyed reading Helium, especially the poems that touched on Blackness and toxic masculinity and privilege. I appreciated the use of accessible language in all his poetry. I liked how the author effortlessly alternated between declarative and reflective tones in a way that really provokes thought from the reader. I loved Rudy Francisco’s bluntness and his messy metaphors that inexplicably made sense. Helium is a remarkable poetry book for a debut author.

Recommended! (4 stars)

This collection of poetry resonated with me. People who feel so much oftentimes have a difficult time putting those feelings into words. Rudy Francisco makes it look effortless. I love the way he expresses himself and makes you feel what he feels so beautifully.

I absolutely loved this collection of poetry. Short but sweet, Francisco’s words are beautiful and evoke a myriad of emotions. His writing flows beautifully and depicts each poem’s deepest meanings in vivid detail. It is impossible not to become wrapped up by each phrase and carried through each and every page. He uses his great talent for words—for memorably phrasing his thoughts—to raise awareness about elements of conflict and trouble we currently deal with in society. It is wonderful to see writers attacking these issues and trying to reach a wider audience in such a creative way.

This is one of those collections that truly stands out to me because, while it fits very well with the work we see in the poetry genre these days, it has a little something extra to it. It does focus on common topics such as love and heartbreak, but it defines itself as even more unique and different than that. Francisco does not shy away from discussing social issues and these are the poems where we as readers will feel the most. His words are raw and fearless, upfront and honest, meaningful and utterly powerful. They spoke to me greatly, as I am sure they will to many other readers.

Every poem contains a strong and important message that truly packs a punch and is sure to stick with the reader long after completing the collection. Francisco speaks on topical and significant subjects, such as racism, sexism, and mental health—subjects for which constant discussion is crucial. He brings attention to these things through lyrical and absorbing prose that activates the mind and envelopes the soul. I found these poems to be incredibly impactful, thought-provoking, and a fantastic use of this literary platform. I very highly recommend giving this collection a read and I am personally beyond eager to read more of Francisco’s work in the future.

Beautiful poetry. The collection of writing really coaxes emotions out of readers. Filled with poems that were relatable and others that were not, this collection of poetry is an absolutely amazing read.

I love poetry books and Rudy Francisco isn't my favorite spoken word poet but still pretty good! I really liked some poems and really didn't connect to others at all.

I tend to read young poets so finding this book and how it talks about growing old was AMAZING. I loved how the poems touched subjects that aren't talked about as often as they should, like race and class

I have always loved Rudy's poetry from as soon as I discovered his work so I absolutely loved having them all, and many more, put together in this book. I couldn't put it down, through all of the emotions it makes you fell. He has a true talent.

This is a very different type of poem I've managed to read and it was surprisingly good! I'm gotten used to reading about self-love and how to find love again, everything what a woman can go through, but this is different because one, this is a man's perspective on how he has dealt with some personal stuff while growing up being black. This is a great poem for it focuses on some sensitive topics such as how it was growing up, how he was treated differently because of the color of the skin. This poem goes beyond then what I anticipated. It's deep and an eye-opener. His form of poetry is reflective and true to its core. I really enjoyed it and I rated it 4 our of 5 since there were some poems I couldn't comprehend. Maybe because it was coming from a male but it was hard to vision some things he wrote. I would recommend this book. `

I normally do not review poetry books on my blog. I do read poetry but usually not a full book. Melinda from The Book Musings was telling me about poems by Rudy Franscisco and I decided to request the book for review. I am happy I did as there are some really beautiful poems in there.
There is a lot variation in Rudy his poems. All of the poems have a personal background but where the one is about love and insecurities others are about race, gender and class and the trouble Rudy experiences with them.
I enjoyed the shorter poems most. In the longer poems I sometimes lost the rhythm. Still there are a lot of true sentences in this small book. After I read the book I looked up Rudy in Youtube and saw a few videos with poems from Helium making them even more personal.

A great mix of poems from a poet I've never heard of, but one I plan to keep an eye on. I enjoyed Rudy's metaphors and the way he's able to write short poems with a punch. His strongest poems, and my favourites, were the ones that dealt with race and his own life experiences.

Helium is where Rudy Francisco shares his thoughts on love, politics, and society. His poetry is honest and raw. My favorite parts were where Francisco touches upon what it’s like as a man. We tend to read how hard it is to be a woman, but he gives us perspective on his struggles as a man without belittling the female point of view.

This book was everything I needed and wanted. I love that he ended this book on a positive note. It was an inspirational poem and reminds the reader that life isn’t over. I would definitely recommend this book to others and look forward to reading more from this author.

These poems are raw, truthful, eye-opening, and honest in all aspects as it felt with such topics such as racism, and other social issues. 
I give this book 5/5 stars

Some of the poems are good - Rudy surely knows how to deal with words, I have to admit it. But they also have this tumblr-hipsta-modern-youth vibe which made me cringe a couple of times... Especially the ones about love - they were so pretentious I couldn't help but smirk. But I can definitely see potential here and I have marked some quotes. I have a feeling that a lot of my friends would love this collection.

Loved this book! I am so happy I gave it a try. I am not a poetry person, but wow, this was good.

I feel like, when I review a book of poems, that whatever I say is going to be inadequate. Several semesters of English Lit classes taught me that I should analyze and evaluate poetry until it looks different I guess. But really, what I want to say is that I loved this collection; the diversity in topics kept me reading and I finished the book in one day.

Some favorites:

Adrenaline Rush
Liberty
Simeona
I Bet the Trees are Thinking
Mercy
Forgiveness
Complainers

*received from netgalley

I thought that this was a pretty cute and insightful read. I generally have a harder time connecting to poetry, but I found myself hardly struggling with this one.

Amazing poetry. I didn't expect to like it this much. I didn't even know [author:Rudy Francisco|5832058] before this, but I think I'll look into his other poem collections.

Every poem in this collection was special. I have to say that I loved almost all of them and I had to stop reading for a few seconds to process before continuing with the next poem. You can notice all the emotional investment that was put in this little book. You won't regret reading it!

This is my favorite collection of poetry I have ever read, even pitted against the greats like Walt Whitman. I have never read something so beautiful, so personal, and so pertinent. Francisco's voice is powerful and his lyricism is astounding. I've already read it three times and gone to buy a physical copy. This will be mandatory reading in my classroom, and I encourage all teachers to pick up their own copy - or copies - for the students in their own schools.

I don’t buy many books but I WILL buy MANY copies of this book as I can to gift, especially to young men.

The content of this book, [racism, sexism, inequalities, family] is so incredibly relevant, especially as it refers to African-American men. I love the self-evaluation, the acknowledgments of the faults and transgressions inflicted [mostly on women] as much as the ones suffered.

There is a lot of raw and dark truth but so much love and beauty too, especially around family.. And both, light and darkness, touched my soul deeply!

It reminded e a lot of Kahlil Gibran style, which is one of my all-time favorite poets.