The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

Fans of Jacqueline Woodson, Meg Medina, and Jason Reynolds will fall hard for this astonishing New York Times-bestselling novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet, about an Afro-Latina heroine who tells her story with blazing words and powerful truth.

Xiomara Batista feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body grew into curves, she has learned to let her fists and her fierceness do the talking.

But Xiomara has plenty she wants to say, and she pours all her frustration and passion onto the pages of a leather notebook, reciting the words to herself like prayers—especially after she catches feelings for a boy in her bio class named Aman, who her family can never know about.

With Mami’s determination to force her daughter to obey the laws of the church, Xiomara understands that her thoughts are best kept to herself. So when she is invited to join her school’s slam poetry club, she doesn’t know how she could ever attend without her mami finding out. But she still can’t stop thinking about performing her poems.

Because in the face of a world that may not want to hear her, Xiomara refuses to be silent.

---

For the Reading Challenge(s):
2024 Diversity Reading Challenge
2024 Audiobook Challenge
2024 Library Love Challenge

---

The Reason

I recently listened to Elizabeth Acevedo’s Clap When You Land, and several people recommended this book as well. So I listened.

The Quotes

“And I think about all the things we could be if we were never told our bodies were not built for them.”

“Burn it! Burn it. This is where the poems are,” I say, thumping a fist against my chest. “Will you burn me? Will you burn me, too?”

“She tells me words give people permission to be their fullest self and aren’t these the poems I most needed to hear?”

“When your body takes up more room than your voice, you are always the target of well-aimed rumors.”

The Narrator

Narrated by the author herself. It was wonderful and I loved how expressive she was.

My Thoughts

I thought it was brilliant and so beautifully expressed. The story, and the narration, pulls you right in, and I can just feel Xiomara’s essence oozing through the words. I’m not sure I like the ending though. I feel like it ended too conveniently and it didn’t feel realistic. Things don’t just work out that way overnight. But still, I loved the experience of listening to this audiobook.

My Feels

I don’t read poetry often enough, but I find that I’m really loving Acevedo’s works. Xiomara’s voice is so powerful, her story is so powerful, listening to her speak and express herself is so powerful. I felt so deeply, everything that she talked about, her experiences, her discovery of her self and her voice. I’m so angry with her family. Her mother, especially. How can a mother do such horrible things to her child? It resonates very personally for me.

My Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 stars.

Have you read this book? Would you read this book? Did you like the book or do you think you would like it?