First published 2018
Xiomara Batista has learned to speak with her fists in her Harlem neighborhood. Her body has developed curves that draw unwanted attention, and her mother pushes strict religious rules that leave no room for questions. Xiomara channels her anger and dreams into a leather notebook, writing poems she recites like private prayers. When she develops feelings for Aman from her biology class, she knows her family can never discover this relationship. Her mother's devotion to church doctrine means Xiomara must keep her deepest thoughts hidden. Then her school's slam poetry club extends an invitation. Xiomara wants desperately to perform her work, but attending meetings would mean risking her mother's discovery. She faces an impossible choice between silence and self-expression. In a world that seems determined not to hear her voice, Xiomara must decide whether to stay quiet or speak her truth aloud.
Genres: fiction, african-american, coming-of-age, contemporary, 21st-century, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, lyrical, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, silence-vs-self-expression
Setting: Harlem
Period: 21st-century
357 pages · Hardcover · Quill Tree Books
Content warnings: depression