The Poet X

Fifteen-year-old Xiomara Batista, a Dominican teenager living in Harlem, learns to express herself through poetry as she navigates issues such as religion, boys, and family. Xiomara uses poetry to explain the world around her and navigate the changes that come with growing up.   

Xiomara struggles with feeling unheard and ignored by her mother, and she begins to question the religion that her mother forced her to partake in. She also deals with her mother’s physical abuse and name-calling. Xiomara finds herself rebelling as she attempts to gain some freedom from her mother’s control. Through her poetry, she learns to express herself and gains the courage to confront her mother about her feelings, ultimately leading to a healthier dynamic in their relationship.  

Xiomara feels unheard and unable to hide in her Harlem neighborhood. Ever since her body developed curves, she has learned to let her fists and fierceness do the talking. She is being sexualized by the kids at school, as well as the older men in her neighborhood. As she begins to express herself through poetry, she grows more confident in questioning the world around her and sticking up for herself. 

Xiomara is a relatable main character who navigates realistic conflicts, including family expectations and self-identity. Although she makes mistakes, she learns from them and becomes a better communicator. Xiomara’s experiences highlight the power of words as she uses them to connect with others and make friends. As Xiomara learns who she is, she breaks the expectations of others who don’t see her as a poet and believe in her dreams.  

The Poet X highlights the challenges that teenage girls encounter while growing up, particularly within the context of religion and Latino culture. The lessons in the novel will leave a lasting impact on readers, effectively teaching them the power of words and how to strengthen relationships.  Xiomara’s growth will help readers gain confidence in themselves and discover their identity as they navigate the world around them. 

Sexual Content  

• Xiomara deals with unwanted attention from boys in her class. She writes, “I am the baby fat that settled into D-cups and swinging hips so that the boys who called me a whale in middle school now ask me to send them pictures of myself in a thong.” 
• Xiomara discusses her desire to kiss a boy. She tells her friend, “I’m just saying, I’m ready to stop being a nun. Kiss a boy, shoot, I’m ready to creep with him behind a stairwell and let him feel me up.” 
• Xiomara and the boy she secretly dates, Aman, hold hands and kiss. “I press my lips to his. His mouth is soft against mine. Gently, he bites my bottom lip. And then slides his tongue into my mouth.” They hang out at the park after school and listen to music, and then they walk home. “My hand held in his hand held in his coat pocket.”  
• Xiomara runs from her home after getting into an argument with her mom and meets up with Aman. The two head over to his house, as his parents are not home. They kiss and undress each other but do not have sex because Xiomara changes her mind. “In Aman’s arms naked skin rubs against mine. In Aman’s arms kisses and kisses. My neck and ear. In Aman’s arms fingers touch my breasts. In Aman’s arms I stop breathing. In Aman’s arms I feel good.” The scene is described over two pages. 
• Xiomara discusses masturbation in one of her poems. She describes, “In bed at night my fingers search a heat I have no name for. Sliding into a center, finding a hidden core, or stem, or maybe the root.” The poem lasts for one page.  
• Xiomara’s brother, Xavier, is gay and goes on dates with a boy.  

Violence  

• Xiomara writes about how she gets in fights with boys who are mean or vulgar towards her. “I face the dude who groped me, push him hard in the back. . . If you ever touch me again I’ll put my nails through every pimple on your fucking face.”   
• Xiomara’s mom makes her kneel on rice and hits her to punish her after spotting her kissing Aman on the subway. “Mami prays and prays while my knees bite into grains of rice.”  

Drugs and Alcohol  

• Xiomara talks about the drug dealers who hang out in her neighborhood. They make vulgar comments as she sits on her stoop. They shout to her: “You need to start wearing [short dresses] like that,” “Shit, you’d be wifed up before going back to school,” and “Especially knowing you church girls are all freaks.” Xiomara ignores them.  
• Xiomara dates a boy who smokes weed. She says, “I’ve never smoked weed, but I think Aman does sometimes after school; I smell it on his sweater.”

Language  

• Profanity is used occasionally and includes ho, bullshit, damn, fucking, and slut.

Supernatural  

• None 

Spiritual Content  

• Xiomara struggles with being Catholic because she doesn’t feel as connected to it anymore. She questions whether she truly believes in God.  “As I got older I began to really see the way that the church treats a girl like me differently.”  
• She no longer feels close to God: “Jesus feels like a friend. . . who has suddenly become brand new; who invites himself over too often, who texts me too much. A friend I just don’t think I need anymore.”