When Push Comes to Shove Back

Jeremy enjoys making Matt's life hell. Matt's an easy target and he knows it. Matt does everything he can to avoid Jeremy at school, but it is impossible. So when Jeremy becomes the target of the school's biggest drug dealer, Matt is the last person he would turn to for help. But when strange circumstances pull them together, they have no choice but to try to put their differences aside and work together to keep others from getting hurt, or worse... Through the voices of Matt and Jeremy, and that of a narrator, the author weaves threads of threats, turmoil, and deceit, trust and betrayal, violence and fear, victimization and empowerment that not only pervade school systems, but also societies... A NOTE TO READERS As a writer, I focus on the telling of a story an action-packed adventure that will grab you. I want you to experience fast paced, unexpected events, and gripping suspense. I want the details and situations to be larger than life but I want them to ring true in the realities of your life. In short, I want When PUSH Comes to Shove Back to be a riveting read to the very last page. A NOTE TO PARENTS AND TEACHERS As a parent, I hope that teenagers, parents, teachers, and others who care about young people will think about the ideas and events in the story. I hope that all will see glimpses of themselves in the characters. I hope that, perhaps, a few will gain insights into being a teen, or being an adult in the life of a teen. I hope that some of those insights will give them pause. As a teacher, I urge other teachers and adults to use the story as a catalyst for communication and debate about the issues that face young people issues that must not be ignored by distracted parents, dismissed by busy teachers, or hidden in embarrassment and shame by youth because these issues lead to tragic consequences, often to disturbing headlines, and more often, to the quiet crumbling of a defeated spirit. TO CONTACT AUTHOR DIRECTLY re speaking engagements, workshops, or workbooks to accompany the novel, send email inquiries to alzwellthatenzwell@gmail.com