Customer Reviews

Retaliation: A Novel

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Yasmin Shiraz explores the myriad of problems that result from exacting revenge in her latest book, Retaliation: What Would You Do If...

Teshera Odom lives her life beneath the radar to avoid unwanted attention and trouble. Being a teenager is hard enough without having to deal with the ever-present violence of a Washington D.C neighborhood. Seventeen year-old, Teshera does not allow herself to get caught up in the madness that surrounds her. She keeps her focus on school and tucks away money that she earns doing hair. She treats everyone with respect and demands it from others, especially her boyfriend and basketball star, Ahmed. When Teshera is suddenly attacked, her loved ones demand revenge, setting off a string of life-altering events that threaten to destroy the lives of Teshera, her family and her classmates.

Yasmin Shiraz offers an entertaining, straight-forward, and no-holds-barred story about choices and consequences. Readers can relate to the characters and the mistakes that they make. Shiraz talks to teens on their level and presents a variety of choices and options for the characters and readers to consider regarding everyday themes such as family, friendship, peer pressure, dating, gangs and violence. Shiraz also holds parents responsible for their choices and actions. She encourages parents and teens to work as a team in order to provide a safe and healthy environment for their family. The book club questions and conflict management tips included in the book make Retaliation a great tool for teens and their parents.

Reviewed by M. P. McKinney
APOOO BookClub

Seventeen year old Tashera Odom had no idea her world was about to change one afternoon on the way home from school.
Tashera is brutally attacked by three girls who lay in wait for her. Upon admission to the hospital Tashera's mother Sheila and her brother Khalil learn of her devastating injuries; both vow revenge on the girls who did this to her.
Sheila is especially angry...the streets WILL NOT claim another one of her children!

Khalil is no longer a member of the Deuce Tres Gang because of his disability, but Tashera wonders if the attack was because of her brother's ties with his old comrades. As Tashera slowly begins to heal her boyfriend Ahmed is by her side proving his deep love for her.
But the question still remains who hurt this young girl so viciously and why?
With the involvement of school officials and the police a serious investigation is underway... the attacker's personalities, home life and actions are all uncovered.

Sit tight as the mystery unfolds and the attacker's identities are revealed. Read how Mother and Son each embark on their own personal missions of revenge and the devastating price they both pay!

Finally! A novel that is a great read and one a parent can safely pass to a teenager. An excellent plot written where the author explores all aspects of the characters involved in this situation.
The altercation between the two mothers was all too real especially when anger overrules common sense. All the main characters paid seriously for their actions and that is not to be overlooked.

Kudos to author Yasmin Shiraz! She has taken her first love; helping our youths, and incorporated that true passion into this well written novel, giving us a real situation with the added bonus of great story telling.

Locksie
ARC Book Club Inc.

Once again the author Yasmin Shiraz hits home hard with another novel written for direction, inspiration and solid advice targeting the urban
community.

Through the voices of four young teenage high school students: Tashera, DeCalia, Jessica & Alexandra. Misfortune, tragedy & hope all surface as a result of these four girl's abrupt relationship.

The story reveals all the difficult emotions and tribulations of both generations: the parental generation & the youth generation. Desperation, despair, betrayal, deadly abandonment, suffering, disappointment, hatred and neglect drip from the author's ink BUT in the ending the author cleverly gives the reader the solution of hope to overturn these burdens.

The author's message is clear: although one can possess street smarts and have recognition for their reputation, you cannot avoid the unavoidable, And despite the circumstances - don't give up hope, there "is" a way out.

The story was unpredictable and I found myself reading the story in anticipation of the ending.

It's a masterpiece & a strong recommendation for youth (ages 10 and above), as well as adults and your local high school & library. For some adults it's a reminder and for other adults it's a wake-up call to stay active in the development of young people's future.

Yasmin Shiraz is a powerful voice with a mighty pen who once again delivers, infusing hope through the channel of literature.

*2009 ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers

Tashera Odom is a quiet, intelligent, seventeen-year-old that works hard to stay out of the drama that plagues her violent Washington D.C. neighborhood. Known mainly for her pleasant personality, good grades and hair styling abilities, Tashera isn't the type of teen that one would call `troubled.' Her life changes when she is brutally attacked in an alley by three girls from her high school. The reader learns quickly that this attack is not random but deliberate. One of the attackers is the ex-girlfriend of Tashera's boyfriend Ahmed and is jealous of the relationship.

While Tashera physically heals from the attack in the hospital, her mother, Shelia and wheelchair bound older brother Khalil both take matters into their own hands. Their main objective is to seek retaliation for the attack. The story quickly intensifies when Shelia is jailed after physically attacking the mother of one of the attackers. Meanwhile, Khalil plots to strike back at Tashera's attackers by reconnecting with his former Deus-Tres gang members. The reaction of the attack described from the viewpoint of the police, school and community is raw and honest by the author and motivational speaker, Yasmin Shiraz. Since there are some surprises in the story, I won't give away the events that lead up to the ending of the story.

I have had "Retaliation" on my bookshelf for months and kept putting off reading it due to other projects I've been working on. When I finally had the opportunity to read it, I did so in three sittings over a 24-hour period - I just couldn't put this book down because it was so true to life. The book is based on Shiraz's experience working with a 15 year old that was attacked by teens in her neighborhood. She vividly describes the violence in a community and how different members of the community react to it. I think the lingering question Shiraz presents readers with is if they think violence is the answer and a justifiable reason for retaliation. Given what is taking place in my city as well as other large urban cities across the nation, I think that this book should appear on district reading lists for pre-teens and teens and shouldn't be missed.

RETALIATION: What Would You Do If..... by Yasmin Shiraz is a fictional account of one family's plan of revenge against a group of teenage girls who attacked the baby girl of the Odum family. The book examines the steps each family member takes to right a wrong.

While walking home from school, Tashera Odum finds herself surrounded by three classmates who beat her into unconsciousness. Interrupted by a paramedic who witnesses the scene from his mother's window, the three dash off, but leave damning evidence. When word filters out through the school and certain neighborhoods in Southeast Washington D. C., speculation begins as to why. While the school principal and the police conduct their investigations, each member of Tashera's family goes into attack mode to inflict their own brand of justice. The book continues through the arrest of the suspects, their incarceration and the trial.

Shiraz has penned this story in graphic detail, while posing questions as to values, responsibility to self and a host of societal ills plaguing the nation and families. While reading, I was constantly appraising the options the characters used to get their revenge and I believe this is the point Shiraz was making. What would you do if in a similar situation?

Reviewed by Dawn R. Reeves
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

Life is about choices but some aspects of your life are pre-determined regardless of your choices, such as your parentage or the neighborhood you grow up in. 17 year old Tashera Odom always made positive choices. She avoided the gangs her D.C. neighborhood was riddled with, she attended school and even managed to stay away from gossip and jealousy that was displayed by her classmates. But still Tashera managed to find herself on the receiving end of a beatdown from 3 girls that damages way more than just her physical well being.

The damage done to Tashera affects her ability to make positive choices. Tashera's on the brink of becoming a knife wielding teenager to prevent anymore unwarranted attacks. It also affects her mother Sheila, her brother Khalil and her boyfriend Ahmed as they all set out to retaliate against the girls who hurt their loved one. While Sheila risks incarceration, Khalil reaches out to his former gang members and Ahmed risks his basketball scholarship. Is retaliation worth the consequences? What would you do?

These are the questions that Yasmin Shiraz skillfully examines in her novel Retaliation. Retaliation is an excellent read not only for teenagers but also for adults interacting with teenagers who are forced to make difficult choices everyday. Choices for which the consequences can be very grave.