Thomas Gaffney reviewed The poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
Review of 'The poet X' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I completely surprised myself by giving this four stars. I'm NOT one for poetry. It is not my jam, it is nowhere near my wheelhouse. Opening the cover, I immediately decided I wasn't going to like this book, told as a collection of poems by the main character, Xiomara. As it went, I admitted the story behind the poems was actually fantastic. I figured I would give this three stars. As it went on, I found myself more and more enthralled with Xiomara and rooting for her as I'd root for the final girl in a horror story/movie. I think that's what won me over. Xiomara and her life as a Black & Latina woman growing up in Harlem to a strictly religious mother and uncaring father. By the end, I was completely in Xiomara's corner and pulling for her in the Slam Poetry competition. I still don't like poetry …
I completely surprised myself by giving this four stars. I'm NOT one for poetry. It is not my jam, it is nowhere near my wheelhouse. Opening the cover, I immediately decided I wasn't going to like this book, told as a collection of poems by the main character, Xiomara. As it went, I admitted the story behind the poems was actually fantastic. I figured I would give this three stars. As it went on, I found myself more and more enthralled with Xiomara and rooting for her as I'd root for the final girl in a horror story/movie. I think that's what won me over. Xiomara and her life as a Black & Latina woman growing up in Harlem to a strictly religious mother and uncaring father. By the end, I was completely in Xiomara's corner and pulling for her in the Slam Poetry competition. I still don't like poetry at all, but I love X.