Author: Elizabeth Acevedo
Publisher & Date: Quill Tree Books, 7 Apr 2020
Page Count: 384 pages
ISBN: 978-0062662811
Age/Reading Level: 12-18/Grades 7-12
Representation: Afro-latina
Other Information:
Book Information
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.
Challenges & Bans
The book has been challenged for the protagonist’s exploration of faith and identity, along with themes of sexuality and body image. Challengers have brought claims of the book being “anti-Christian” and violating constitutional safeguards against religious indoctrination.
Specific Challenges*:
Awards & Accolades
CILIP Carnegie Medal, Golden Kite Award for YA Fiction, National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, Michael L Printz Award, Pura Belpré Award, Boston Globe-Horn Award, Walter Award, Odyssey Award, New York Times Bestseller
