Pushback (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798223566915)

Pushback, Claim Your Voice gives a rare glimpse inside the boilerhouse of prejudice, lust and bullying in schools. Sheilagh, a rebellious teen with a chip the size of a Volkswagen on her shoulders, believes that violence and anger will solve her friendship problems. Her temper alienates the school beauty, its football hero and even the only guy she likes. In composing a story about an immigrant girl, Titshia, who is attacked out of jealousy and lust, Sheilagh recognizes a mysterious connection with her life in the Riverdale projects.

Sheilagh and her fictional creation, Titshia, must deal with people who devalue them and underestimate their abilities. Both are outcasts who suffer without 'the sheltering tree of friendship'. Both chafe under the bullying dealt to anyone who does not hide that they are different. Both girls are measured against common definitions of what it is to be female.

How will they pushback against these forces to claim their own voices?