This slim book of 100 poems, which Yong Ho Nam had written to his future wife before he had met her, had a potential to be absolutely breathtaking.

The reason it falls so woefully short is the result of Nam's reluctance to try and describe with precision a person that one has never met. This instinct to be unspecific, to avoid using too much detail when describing a complete stranger, is completely understandable. But in the case of love poems, banality is unforgivable.

Whoever had told Nam that a carefully curated a list of objects or actions can make for a great poem, that person was not wrong. They should have added, however, that what makes these lists interesting is specific details, poignant images, and emotionally charged diction. So rather than:

"Wishing you were by my side

Wishing I could hold your hand

Wishing you would lay your head on my shoulder

Wishing to hear your voice instead of silence" (30)

—can't we instead wish to hear the crackle of leaves under her boots as she walks beside us on a forest trail? can't we feel the ridges of her knuckles squeezed between our own? can't we smell the shampoo rising up from her hair as it brushes against our skin? can't we fixate on the pink movements of her lips and the flash of her teeth as she laughs?

Of course, sparseness is its own kind of style. I have no beef with Hemingway or translated Japanese poems. But when the entire book starts to blend together in one indistinguishable daydream about holding hands and walking side by side, then I have a problem.

There's something to be said for attempting to capture a universal essence of love—but what we have here, unfortunately, is merely flat and predictable.

Still, we will also have to forgive the repetitive adolescent voice that never quite matures throughout the book, because what we have here are adolescent poems. They were written in youth, and capture all the awkward phrases ("I stare at you through our love's connection," page 56) and dreams of youth. Still, there are moments of succinct loveliness:

"But at the end of the darkness

I saw the light

I don't know where exactly the light is

I just know that light is you" (35)

When read as a document of a young man's exploration and experimentation of committing his jumbled, confused thoughts to paper, My Love For You Before I Met You is a adequate first attempt. Perhaps in the future, we will see stronger language and a more distinct voice that will better suit the loveliness of Nam's sentiment.

Rating: 3/5

[I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.] ( )

My Love For You Before I met You: Love Poems. Lovely and quick read. I got through it in one sitting. I have not been into poetry as an adult like I did during my teen years so I was very excited that it was a book that I was chosen to receive and review.

116 pages...the cover is lovely...the book itself broken up into three sections with content that deals with love and marriage. Some unique and beautiful...some I did not care for...but that is usual for a book of poems..not everything is going to capture us. Even still, I enjoyed this book and liked most of what I read.

Thanks as always to the peeps at LibraryThing, the author Yong Ho Nam and P.R.A Publishing for my free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review to which I gladly and voluntarily gave.

I received this book from the author for an honest review. The concept of this collection of poems is fascinating. How do you love someone before you've even met them? Many of the poems were repetitive in nature, but there were some that were beautiful and gave a new perspective. ( )

A really nice collection of poetry. You can feel the author's emotions with each poem. It is an easy read but full of gratifications and love. ( )

Loving book. ( )