The Poet X
by Elizabeth Acevedo
22 jurisdictions · Banned 2019-2025 · Published
The Poet X is Elizabeth Acevedo's 2018 National Book Award-winning novel in verse about an Afro-Latina teenager finding her voice through slam poetry, banned or restricted in 22+ U.S. jurisdictions.
Why it was banned
The book has been challenged for its protagonist Xiomara's questioning of her Catholic upbringing and for its frank treatment of sexuality. Acevedo, who came up through the slam poetry circuit, has said the book is about young people claiming the right to question what they were given.
Cited reasons
- anti-religious content claim
- sexually explicit material claim
- racial content
Primary states
Texas, Pennsylvania, Florida
Why it matters
Acevedo won the 2018 National Book Award for Young People's Literature for The Poet X, the first Afro-Latina to win that prize. The book is one of the most widely-taught works of contemporary young adult literature and uses the slam poetry form natively. Its banning is a case study in how challenges combine objections to race, sexuality, and religious questioning into single complaints.
Themes
- Afro-Latina identity
- slam poetry
- religious questioning
- coming of age
Awards
- National Book Award for Young People's Literature (2018)
- Michael L. Printz Award
- Carnegie Medal
Where to buy
The Ledger recommends Black-owned booksellers. Each stocks this title or can order it.
- MahoganyBooksNational Harbor, Maryland · Founded
Independent bookstore specializing in books written for, by, and about people of the African diaspora.
- Semicolon Bookstore and GalleryChicago, Illinois · Founded
Chicago's only Black woman-owned independent bookstore, with a mission to raise literacy rates among Chicago Public School students.
- Harriett's BookshopPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania · Founded
Named for Harriet Tubman, focusing on women authors, artists, and activists.
- The Lit. BarBronx, New York · Founded
The only independent bookstore in the Bronx, combining a curated bookshop with a wine bar.
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Books in the catalog that share themes with this one.
Documented by The Ledger. A record of what Black America built and what was taken.
Book cover via Open Library. Editorial use under fair use.