Written by Ben Underhill
“I Wrote This For You,” written by Iain S. Thomas under the penname Pleasefindthis, found its way into my life almost accidentally. I was in Barnes & Noble shopping for Christmas presents in 2015 when I stumbled upon the book and I haven’t been able to put it down since. This bestselling collection of poetry, accompanied by images, taps into the rawest human emotions in the best possible way.
My obsession with the book stems from its concept. In his TEDxJohannesburg talk, Thomas explained, “By leaving out things like gender, age, race, location, people apply the stories to themselves.” I found this quality fascinating: all-inclusive poetry that never gives up the pure emotion behind the poetry.
The book contains a beautiful mixture of short, free-verse poetry and photography, often leaving room for interpretation as to how each poem relates to its picture, if at all. If anything, the pictures are just as interesting to examine and enjoy.
Of the poems in the book, my favorite is “The Corners of Your Mouth.” The poem delves into why we always smile for photographs. Thomas’ reasoning: the hope that there would be something to be happy about in the future. The sheer depth and realism hit me, and, since it is one of the first poems in the book, the poem hooked me on Thomas’s writing. That’s why I religiously read the book over and over again, devouring every word that resonated, which was most of them.
There were only a few poems that didn’t particularly stick with me. If one poem was not to my liking, the next one usually was. For the most part, the few poems I did not like, one of my friends did.
One of the best parts about “I Wrote This For You” is that it’s not the only one of its kind. Thomas has published two other books under the titles “I Wrote This For You and Only You” and “I Wrote This For You: Just the Words.” Both books bring about the same true emotion and passion as the first, and Thomas shows no sign of stopping as he has also published a myriad of other books aside from these three.
The book provides original yet somehow familiar poems. “I Wrote This For You” can quickly become a favorite and provides easily shareable poetry. Whether you keep the book to yourself or share it with you friends, “I Wrote This For You” truly is written for you.
