Zakiya’s Enduring Wounds

Zakiya, a sophomore at Roosevelt High School, has settled into the new school year. She loves her friends, the volleyball team and her dance class. There’s even a cute guy she has her eye on. But her world falls apart when her dad dies unexpectedly. Zakiya had a special relationship with her father and is completely devastated by his death. After the funeral, her friends and family try to console her, but Zakiya pushes them away. She just wants to be alone. She quits the volleyball team, shuts down the boy she once dreamed of dating and even cuts class. When she experiences a frightening episode of anxiety, she discovers that cutting herself helps to relieve the pain. Will she ever learn how to deal with her grief and sense of loss? Zakiya’s Enduring Wounds is the eleventh novel in Gloria L. Velasquez’s popular Roosevelt High School Series, which features a multiracial group of teenage students who must individually confront social and cultural issues (such as violence, sexuality and prejudice) that young adults face today. This novel [is] readable, culturally responsive and compassionate. Buy this and the entire series.–School Library Journal on Forgiving Moses