Poet X Puck

Beautiful, Powerful, and a Quick Read

This was the first book I've read in Spanish in quite a while and I was delighted to find myself devouring it in two days.

The Spanish: Poet X is a novel in verse, so while it's technically 350 pages long, it's not terribly text dense. I definitely looked up some words as I was reading, but I'd say that this is a totally doable first or second book in Spanish. It's worth mentioning that it's a translation from English, but the author is Dominican-American, so the cultural context is still very relevant. It's useful for learning a lot of words related to everyday life, since even though it's poetry it's not very embellished. Think simple but powerful. Also, I highly recommend checking out Acevedo's other books if you enjoy this one!

The Story: Poet X is a gutting and ultimately uplifting coming of age story. Xiomara is a teenage girl struggling to come to terms with her place in the world, as she grows from a girl into a woman, questions her religion, which so often seems to undermine her, and navigates a complicated relationship with her mother. (There's also a cute romance.) I loved how the book uses Xiomara's poetry both to literally tell the story but also as a vehicle for Xiomara to gain confidence, find a place for herself, and express her presence in the world. Definitely worth reading!