The Poet X book review | 5 star read

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Published by HarperTeen on March 6, 2018
Pages: 368
Goodreads

A young girl in Harlem discovers slam poetry as a way to understand her mother’s religion and her own relationship to the world. Debut novel of renowned slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo.
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, much less speak her words out loud. But still, she 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.

I went into The Poet X blind. I had no idea about the story, just that the writing is in verse. The book has so much hype. Expectations were high. I really want to say, for half of this book I was going to actually rate this is a 3 star. It was only the last quarter which blew me away. I fell completely in love with the characters and, fell totally into their situation. I definitely think this is a book that grows on you. It has a slow beginning which builds to such a fantastic impact. I wasn’t expecting to love this one as much as I did, but it was a nice surprise.

Characters in The Poet X

We follow a brother and sister in The Poet X who come from a strict family with rules and expectations. As twins they are particularly close but seem to be dealing with completely separate things. Exploring the sibling bond really made this book stand out for me. I adore the fact that they aren’t always loving towards each other. There were moments where they hated each other and riled against their bond, but were always there when they each needed them. It was beautiful look at the way families work and I love it was so realistic.

The big relationship in The Poet X is Xiomara and her Mami. I read through the majority of this feeling a little disconnected. I think there is a lot of dramatics going on and sometimes it felt a little too much. However where the events all come to a head packs a punch. The emotion running through all those moments is so so raw and I can’t even start to describe the feeling when I think of the two of them. It was such a guttural experience and it is the one reason this book got five stars.

Good and Bad

For me the good bits of The Poet X are definitely the moments where it feels as though I was punched in the stomach. There was actually a moment in this book where it made me cry without me even realising it. I mean actually tears. Sitting there and wondered what the heck this book was doing to me. I adore that it is so well built up and pushes you into completely raw emotion. I feel as though it shouldn’t have been a surprise but it was. It wasn’t over done and there was a perfect balance of the two. I just adore this book and the ending. It really shows how family life can have its ups and downs.

The bad parts are for me the first half of the book. I felt a little bit of a disconnect. I think it might have to do with the fact I don’t read too many poetry books. The poems were great but sometimes it felt as though there was more disconnection than coherent storyline.

Recommendation

I would definitely recommend The Poet X. This book broke my heart. I adored the characters and the representation all the way through the story. I wasn’t expecting to feel as strongly as a I did but it blew me away. Definitely one of my favourites, so go and pick it up!

Have you read this one? What did you think? What was your favourite parts? Let me know!