The Poet X Sparknotes

"The Poet X" is a novel written by Elizabeth Acevedo. The book tells the story of Xiomara, a young girl growing up in Harlem, New York, who uses poetry as a means of expressing her thoughts and feelings. Xiomara Batista is a 15-year-old girl who comes of afro-dominican descent & lives in Harlem, New York. She also has a twin brother named Xavier. Xiomara uses poetry to express her feelings that others won't understand, Especially Mami. Mami is her stern Dominican mother that loves to go to church & wants Xiomara to be a perfect teenager. Settings can help develop character, when Xiomara is home listening to Drake she is at ease. But, when she's at school she feels uncomfortable and like she doesn't fit in anywhere. Lastly, when she’s at church,

Listening to him calms her nerves and makes her feel at ease. She enjoys listening by herself but she also really enjoys listening to him with Aman. Listening to Drake and his rhythm and also his lyrics make her forget about what she has going on at home. In the text, it says, “Just two classmates meeting up after school to listen to music.” This shows how she did not want to make a big deal out of the fact they were going to hang out & listen to music by themselves. But, she was also very excited because she loves

Xiomara has trouble understanding her mother. She doesn't understand things like, why she goes to church so much, & why she wants Xiomara to be confirmed so badly. She uses music as an outlet to get her mind off of what she has going on at home. Also, Xiomara strongly dislikes high school. She feels that she gets too many odd stares and weird looks all because of her body. She describes her body as curvy, thick, and plump but those around her see her as just her body not who she really is inside that body. She feels judged when she walks around school & just wants to be unnoticed. Lastly, Xiomara is forced to go to CCD classes for her mother. Her mother feels the necessity for Xiomara to get confirmed by Father Sean for a reason Xiomara doesn’t understand. She explains to Father Sean how she doesn’t understand why she needs to shut her voice out for the commandments of god. Her mother became very annoyed after she said that & punished Xiomara for what she