I am rating this book a 5 star review!
I never thought that I would love this book as much as I did. It is all slam poetry which is a new genre for me is. I was blown away. Even though it is a poetry book, it reads like a novel. You feel as though you are reading deep into her soul. She discussed a lot of in-depth topics and really opens up about the main characters struggles as she grows up in a strict religious household. This book has been on my TBR (to be read) list for some time now, and I am glad that I picked it up.
I would highly recommend this book to anyone that is interested in poetry. The writing was incredible. It is like every single line and word was carefully chosen. Every sentence carefully constructed. I found myself reading a page and seeing why the sentences were structured a certain way, or her word choices. I had a Spanish/English dictionary right on my phone as I read as well. That way every line of the novel, I could read and know what was happening.
The characters, including the main character and her twin brother, really interested me. I am also a twin, so I resonated with these characters’ bond.
Some of the topics include; coming of age, sex, religion, growing up Dominican in American, sibling bonds, body issues, sexuality, parental bonds, religion, etc. Identity is a huge topic in this novel as well. She is a teenager just trying to find her way in America. But her parents are very strict in religion. So things that Americans can do like date boys, is something that her parents will not allow her to do. She struggles with that balance of being a sister, daughter, student, poet, girlfriend, American, Dominican-American, and even a woman while trying to figure out who she is as a person.
Needless to say, I loved the story a lot. If you think you are going to read this in one sitting, you are so wrong. It took me over a week. You get engrossed in her words.