Review: The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Xiomara Batista wants to hide. From her mother. From the church. From the attention of the boys in her Harlem neighborhood.

Xiomara also wants to be seen. As an individual. As a thinker. As a poet.

When Xiomara is invited to be in her school's poetry club, it becomes impossible to stay silent. At great risk to her fragile family life, words demand to be spoken.

"If I were on fire
who could I count on
to water me down?"

THE POET X is a remarkable story. Told in verse, the novel feels as tense as the tightrope life Xiomara walks. I wanted to mark passages on every page. Reading this book was a very emotional experience for me. As a teen I felt exactly as Xiomara does - pulled between hiding from the world and wanting to be acknowledged by it tears the soul apart. Xiomara's story will show teens that words can heal.


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