Elizabeth Acevedo

**Biographical Information**

Elizabeth Acevedo, a daughter of Dominican immigrants, was born in 1988 in New York. Growing up, her childhood was heavily influenced by storytelling. During her time in high school, she joined a poetry club and began competing in poetry slams and open mics. Being a part of the poetry club helped her develop her skills to communicate her thoughts on topics such as race, gender and culture. This led her to acknowledge the lack of books written by and about people of color.

Elizabeth Acevedo completed her Bachelor of Arts degree from George Washington University and went on to complete an MFA in creative writing from the University of Maryland. She then taught at a school in Maryland for a few years. During this time her students communicated to her that they did not like to read because they were reading books that were about people who were not like them. She began to buy books written by diverse authors but she then realized that she herself could be one of those authors.

Elizabeth Acevedo now resides in Washington D.C. She is now a National Poetry Slam Champion and a New York Times-bestselling author.

**Themes**

Cultural Identity

One of Elizabeth Acevedo’s biggest inspirations for writing books was the fact that she believed there were not many diverse authors or books to begin with. Therefore, you will see the theme of cultural identity in many, if not all, of Acevedo’s books.

*Beastgirl* is focused on the experiences of first-generation American women. Acevedo describes it as “contemplations on Caribbean womanhood,” exploring themes like Dominican folklore”.

*The Poet X* is narrated by the main character, a Dominican American teenager named Xiomara Batista. In this case, the character’s cultural identity is very much intertwined with her religious background. In this book, Acevedo captures the “complicated relationship many Dominicans have with Catholicism, particularly focusing on the ways in which faith can affect women”.

Family & Expectations

In most of her books, Acevedo portrays family dynamics, although they all vary from each other. In *The Poet X* we read about the complicated relationship between the main character and her mother, and the tension that arises between them based on expectations. In *Clap When you Land*, we read the story of two characters that are mirrored, Camino and Yahaira, sisters that lived two completely different lives, a lot having to do with the dynamics of their family. They experience things such as sisterhood, betrayal and privilege. *With the Fire on High* addresses the perseverance and courage held by a teenage mother, Emoni.

The Power of Language

Similar to Acevedo’s realizations about the power of language, the main character in *The Poet X* also has a “circuitous journey to self-actualization through her affinity for language”. Acevedo mentioned, “It was important for me to have Xiomara realize that her voice can push against the varying structures that are trying to tell her that she has to be one kind of girl” and she realizes that through poetry.

**Style**

Although her writing styles vary from book to book, the majority of her pieces are first person point-of-view coming from the main character who is also the narrator. For example, the story of *The Poet X* is told by Xiomara, the main character. However, the entire piece is written in verse with a series of short poems, all coming from the diary of the main character. *Clap When You Land* is written in prose, but what is interesting about it is that it alternates between two points of view, Camino and Yahaira. *With the Fire on High* is also written in straightforward prose coming from the perspective of the character Emoni.

**Bibliography**

Acevedo’s website with descriptions of each text: http://www.acevedowrites.com/books-2

* *Beastgirl and other Origin Myths* (2016)

* *The Poet X* (2018)
	+ New York Times Bestseller, 2019 ALA’s top 10 Best Fiction for Young Adults & top 10 Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults , 2019 Michael L. Printz Award, 2019 Pura Belpre Award, 2019 Odyssey Award and more!
* *With the Fire on High* (2019)
	+ 2020 ALA’s Top 10 Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults & ALA’s Top 10 Best Fiction for Young Adults
* *Clap when you Land* (2020)
	+ New York Times & Indiebound bestseller, 2021 ALA’s Top 10 Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults & ALA’s Top 10 Best Fiction for Young Adults and more!
* *Write Yourself a Lantern: A Journal Inspired by the Poet X* (2020)

**Criticism**

Here is a list of some reviews of Acevedo’s books:

“I hope With the Fire on High finds a wide audience of teens and adults, who will all enjoy its candor, its hopefulness, and its delicious descriptions of food. But first and foremost, this is a love letter written for teens like Emoni, and its message is a powerful one: You can do this and thrive” -NPR

“Elizabeth Acevedo’s New Novel Is Literary Soul Food. Few contemporary coming-of-age stories compare to the one that unfolds around Xiomara Batiste, the defiant, emerging writer at the center of Elizabeth Acevedo’s best-selling, National Book Award-winning debut, *The Poet X*” -New York Times

“Poignant and real, beautiful and intense, this story of a girl struggling to define herself is as powerful as Xiomara’s name: “one who is ready for war.”” - Kirkus Book Reviews

**Additional Information**

Aside from being a writer, Elizabeth Acevedo is also a Grand Slam Poet. Here is one of my personal favorites performances: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-c3y3pYZ1g

**References**

* **http://www.acevedowrites.com/about**
* **https://www.literaturfestival.com/autoren-en/autoren-2019/elizabeth-acevedo**
* **https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2019/05/elizabeth-acevedo-future-young-adult-fiction/589318/**
* **https://www.americamagazine.org/arts-culture/2018/01/25/dominican-slam-poet-elizabeth-acevedo-sex-identity-and-catholicism**
* **https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/poet-and-author-elizabeth-acevedo-sees-fantastical-beasts-everywhere-180974806/**