Review Detail

What I loved:

The idea of a novel in verse is always appealing to me, and I was unable to put this book down, finishing it in a single day. The author captures the hardships of living in an inner-city setting and growing up in poverty, with so many systemic factors working against Sarai, yet still manages to highlight the small joys she finds in her life. Sarai dreams big, but sees all the ways that the world works to hold her down, and is older than her years, seeing difficult situations, such as addiction, domestic violence, gun violence, mental illness, and teen pregnancy, on a regular basis. The characters in the story are realistic and compelling, and while they’re busy focusing on survival, they don’t have time to indulge in processing their emotions. Sarai is left to deal with her own feelings about who she is and how to reconcile her Puerto Rican heritage with the fact that she doesn’t know much about her own history and what it really means to be Puerto Rican.

The Final Verdict:

The story is amazing, addressing race, class, and socioeconomic issues against a background of gentrification and what it means to the people living in the area. Some of the issues may be difficult material for some younger readers to process, but it’s a gorgeously written story. The powerful format of poetry turns this raw and gritty story into a thing of beauty, highlighting Sarai’s strength and hope amidst all the factors working against her.