Books & Texts That Connect to The Poet X

I have come across a few great books that connect to The Poet X. Instead of tacking them on to the end of my Poet X posts, I decided just to start a new post and house them here.

The Poet X is about a Dominican-American teenager that lives in the Bronx. Xiomara is headstrong, knows what she wants (to be a slam poet & have a boyfriend), and is constantly butting heads with her religious and strict mother. My kids enjoyed reading this novel-in-verse during virtual learning and I am always looking for books with similar characters to feed to the students who enjoyed The Poet X.

The list below is just a start and I will add more as I come across them.

Furia

by Yamile Saied Méndez

I had trouble with the opening, but once I got my bearings, I spent the next few nights with a popcorn bowl and this book. Determined to get a shot at being a professional soccer player, Argentinian teenager Camila Hassan has to defy her parents to attend practices and play on a championship team. Very similar to Xiomara, she knows what she wants, but due to her parents' and her society's ideas about what women should and should not be able to do, she has to play in secret despite her immense talent. To make matters worse, her brother and her crush are both getting a shot at the big time, while she is expected to play the role of a good girl. As she gets closer and closer to her dreams, you, too, will be shoveling popcorn down your face while waiting to see what happens.

I plan on pitching this book to some of my female students who love to watch and play soccer.

I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter

by Erika L. Sanchez

Speaking of daughters who do not listen, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter would be another great connection to The Poet X. Julia Reyes has just lost her sister, and this haunts her because her sister, or so she thinks, WAS the perfect Mexican daughter. Julia is far from it. She is smart and wants to go to college and wants nothing to do with getting older and living with her parents (like a perfect Mexican daughter). As Julia tries to work through her grief, wandering many miles around Chicago, she starts to learn that maybe her sister was not as perfect as she thought....

Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo

In Clap When You Land, a plane crash reveals the hidden life of a father who had a family in the Bronx and a family in the Dominican Republic. In each family, there is a stubborn teenage daughter who does not know about her sister. As the story progresses, the secret unravels until both of his daughters decide to take action. Although I enjoyed The Poet X and With the Fire on High, this is my favorite Acevedo book so far.

Feel free to leave your suggestions & connections in the comments section!!