Oaktown Devil

by Renay Jackson

On the streets, crime and violence are part of the daily routine, and revenge has taken the place of stickball. Staying straight isn't easy, especially when one's family is mixed up in gang wars and drug dealing. When Rainbow Jordan's brother Stoney is murdered, he's determined to find the killer—both to avenge his brother's death and prove his own innocence in the murders that follow. Renay Jackson tells his characters' stories in the voices of the the drug lords and their victims; desperate young men and women whose only goal is a better lifestyle and more money despite the consequences; and those who are simply victims of a system that's held them down their whole lives. More than just a page-turner, Oaktown Devil speaks for readers outside the mainstream and offers a voice for an overlooked population.

218 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[grundoon · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Though fictional, there's an interesting snapshot of Oakland in 1993 in here, of its violent streets and those living matter-of-factly on its periphery. There's hardly a likable character to be found, protagonist included, but the candid portrayals are essential to the picture. It won't be the story and its denizens that'll make me pick up subsequent episodes should they cross my path - it'll absolutely be for more glimpses of a side of this town I'm simply not privy to, and the changes that have occurred.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

510 represent!