![]() In this collection of poems, the speaker tells a story of Gabby who struggles to focus in class because of her daydreams. The poems recount difficulties Gabby has with her mother as well as her feelings at the separation of her family. Gabby works hard to leave her daydreaming behind so she can be better accepted by her teachers, classmates, and mother. As the poems progress, the reader gets a glimpse into Gabby's thoughts and emotions. Eventually Gabby lands with a teacher who seems to understand her, and Gabby the dreamer begins to transition into Gabby the writer. The poems within the book are easily accessible by young adults who may connect with Gabby's thoughts and feelings. The poems are free verse in structure and are simple in vocabulary and poetry elements, but the collection as a whole tells a wonderful story about the importance of words and imagination Approximated Grade Level: 3rd-6th
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![]() Jude, a young Syrian girl, must leave her homeland and travel with her mother an unborn sister to Cincinnati to stay with family due to the turmoil in her hometown in Syria. Jude leaves behind her father and older brother. Other Words for Home tells Jude's story through poignantly written verse. Throughout the verses the reader discovers Jude's struggles with trying to fit in to middle school in America while also trying to hold fast to her family and heritage. Jude worries about her older brother and father back home and encounters racism when their is a terrorist attack on U.S. soil, and she must choose whether to wear her hijab or not when she becomes a woman. The book tells a story that students of varying nationalities and ethnic backgrounds can relate to. Approximate Reading Level - Grades 5th-7th ![]() The Poet X has been in my reading queue for quite a while, but I just have not gotten around to reading it. And honestly, now that I have read it, I am not sure what to think. I personally enjoyed the book and feel like my female students would be able to relate to many portions of it, but it is pretty gritty and sexual in places with some difficult themes that would make recommending it and teaching it a little dicey in some school districts. While I am sure it would serve as a window for many of my students to view the experiences young girls often face, I am not sure it is a window a lot of my parents would like their students peering through. Although the book is fictional it reads like an autobiography in verse; the author, Acevedo is Dominican and grew up in New York City which correlates to the main character Xiomara. As I read, I wondered how much of the book was potentially inspired by Acevedo’s own life and experiences. Many of poems center around Xiomara’s feelings towards her body and how men react to her body. She seems to constantly be dealing with having to tell men to stop touching her or commenting on her body which honestly made me angry as I read the book. Xiomara, and no teenager or woman, should have to deal with unwanted sexual advances. Being a teenager and dealing with your body’s changes is difficult enough without adding in the advances Xiomara deals with throughout the book. I am sure teenage girls will see many of their thoughts and feelings mirrored in Xiomara’s and feel a since of kinship with her. Xiomara also grapples at home with her religious mother, twin brother who begins to realize he is homosexual, and a father who is not very present. Xiomara handles her home struggles through writing poetry and leaning on her best friend, Caridad. The mom in the story seems a bit cliché’ to me. She was sent to the U.S. to marry her husband, and left behind her country and desire to be a nun. Her husband was a philanderer and so the mom is basically not happy except for the birth of the “miracle” twins who essentially saved the family unit. Since the mom did not get to become a nun, she is very heavy-handed in her treatment with Xiomara and how Xiomara should act as a female. Xiomara is given very little freedom and is expected not to date until she is finished with college. Although, I did enjoy the book, I would caution parents to review the content before having their children read it simply because of the sexual nature of many of the poems. It would be a good book for mothers to read with their high school-aged daughters to facilitate discussions about some of the things and feelings Xiomara contends with. Approximate Reading Level - 8th and 9th (but I would put the content level at high school) |
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