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Zipcodez A Watts and Compton Tale
A Hood Love Affair
A Novella
Set on the gritty streets of Watts and Compton In The Hood is an exhilarating urban anthem that is bound to entertain and inspire. We are introduced to Lana a gangster chick dealing with the excitement and disappointment of first love, an abusive relationship, and the trials and tribulations of everyday life. We also meet Debo a Compton menace from a well to do family who is mesmerized by the gangsta' lifestyle and gets caught up along the way. Will they change their outlook or will they ultimately succumb to the ills of the ghetto? From the looks of it the Piru street gang is what they will live and die for.
Supported by a cast of colorful characters In The Hood is a definite page turner that will grab your attention from start to finish and have you asking for more.
Retitled, reedited, and republished 02/0414
A Novella
Set on the gritty streets of Watts and Compton In The Hood is an exhilarating urban anthem that is bound to entertain and inspire. We are introduced to Lana a gangster chick dealing with the excitement and disappointment of first love, an abusive relationship, and the trials and tribulations of everyday life. We also meet Debo a Compton menace from a well to do family who is mesmerized by the gangsta' lifestyle and gets caught up along the way. Will they change their outlook or will they ultimately succumb to the ills of the ghetto? From the looks of it the Piru street gang is what they will live and die for.
Supported by a cast of colorful characters In The Hood is a definite page turner that will grab your attention from start to finish and have you asking for more.
Retitled, reedited, and republished 02/0414
162 pages, Paperback
First published April 28, 2011
49 people want to read
About the author
Aleta L. Williams
24 books127 followersI am Aleta aka DivaHotPen and I write books. My Debut is ZipCodez A Watts and Compton Tale; it's a gangster love story.My Bestselling series is Salty A Ghetto Soap Opera 1-4 and Why Me? A Novella and its sequel Why HER?
I am a mother, a wife, and friend, a diva who get great pleasure in inspiring other women!
I love The Lord and trust that all that I've been through prepared me for a time like this ( A Great One....)
I Refuse to complain about anything....
I refuse to live life mad and trying to make others miserable....I refuse to live life with regret and sorrow ( I will not)
God said I shall live life with Joy and not worry or regret because it will not change a thing. Take it all to him in prayer and it shall workout in my favor.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 26, 2010
Well here is the thing. This should be a 4 even maybe a 5 if the author would have followed through on the story. I don't mean tell everything, because I'm not sure if there is a sequel or not.
First let me say the story was a great idea, it really had me wrapped up till the end. It only took about me about the length of a football game to read (read it during a Cowboy's game...poor Cowboy's Romo maybe out for the season).
Here is the problem. The editing! Depending how much I pay, I try not to let it bug me much if I don't pay much. But the length of the book was to short for me to justify paying $4.97 and the editing be this bad (if there was an editor. If not they need to sit it aside and read it later or have someone do it for them.I know it's hard for me to edit my own writing unless I come back a few hours later because I know what I'm trying to say). Lots of misspelled words.
But this is what really threw me. Toward the end it's like it got rushed. I didn't even know who was doing the "talking". I would be reading along, then all of a sudden the story would shift and I would be left thinking, what is going on. Then, I had to go back and read it and say, "oh wait, this is so and so talking. I guess so and so's conversation is over". Now I will say this; I had the Kindle version of this book so I'm not sure if it's a download thing that made the paragraphs run together or what. If the editing(and I know some slip through) of the spelling was better and the end of the story a bit tighter this would be a 4 or 5 rated book.
First let me say the story was a great idea, it really had me wrapped up till the end. It only took about me about the length of a football game to read (read it during a Cowboy's game...poor Cowboy's Romo maybe out for the season).
Here is the problem. The editing! Depending how much I pay, I try not to let it bug me much if I don't pay much. But the length of the book was to short for me to justify paying $4.97 and the editing be this bad (if there was an editor. If not they need to sit it aside and read it later or have someone do it for them.I know it's hard for me to edit my own writing unless I come back a few hours later because I know what I'm trying to say). Lots of misspelled words.
But this is what really threw me. Toward the end it's like it got rushed. I didn't even know who was doing the "talking". I would be reading along, then all of a sudden the story would shift and I would be left thinking, what is going on. Then, I had to go back and read it and say, "oh wait, this is so and so talking. I guess so and so's conversation is over". Now I will say this; I had the Kindle version of this book so I'm not sure if it's a download thing that made the paragraphs run together or what. If the editing(and I know some slip through) of the spelling was better and the end of the story a bit tighter this would be a 4 or 5 rated book.
July 11, 2010
How to Survive in South Central
The streets of Compton and Watts are nothing to play with. Between drugs, gangs, baby momma drama and getting money, it’s really easy to get caught up in the ghetto life. Lana, born and raised in South Central, is living her life trying to do what’s right. She gets entangled in a web of sex, love and lies. Debo, born to a middle class family, doesn’t want for anything but the streets. He is fascinated by the life in the hood and finds himself touching elbows with the law. Will these two young spirits be able to overcome the obstacles of life in the hood?
“Zipcodez” takes readers on a ride of the everyday living in the streets in Central L.A. I was drawn to the characters from the beginning. The storyline was fast-paced, full of drama, and there was plenty of action with a side of inspiration. Other than the editing in need of more work, it was a good book.
Reviewed by: Tange
The streets of Compton and Watts are nothing to play with. Between drugs, gangs, baby momma drama and getting money, it’s really easy to get caught up in the ghetto life. Lana, born and raised in South Central, is living her life trying to do what’s right. She gets entangled in a web of sex, love and lies. Debo, born to a middle class family, doesn’t want for anything but the streets. He is fascinated by the life in the hood and finds himself touching elbows with the law. Will these two young spirits be able to overcome the obstacles of life in the hood?
“Zipcodez” takes readers on a ride of the everyday living in the streets in Central L.A. I was drawn to the characters from the beginning. The storyline was fast-paced, full of drama, and there was plenty of action with a side of inspiration. Other than the editing in need of more work, it was a good book.
Reviewed by: Tange
July 17, 2010
Lana's story is a prime example of how people enter your life for reasons and seasons. She is also an example of what can happen when we open our eyes wide enough to see wider visions.
The lure of the streets and the power of that lifestyle effected everyone in Zipcodez, but Lana found a way to overcome the trials and tribulations that she faced to become successful.
Aleta told a story of love, hate, loyalty, and one that described the consequences of the choices that are made. The setting was realistic and you could see the reality in each word that Alana used. Alana did not attempt to go over the head of the reader, but she did succeed at getting into this reader's head.
This was a great read, and I am highly anticipating part 2 of this story.
The lure of the streets and the power of that lifestyle effected everyone in Zipcodez, but Lana found a way to overcome the trials and tribulations that she faced to become successful.
Aleta told a story of love, hate, loyalty, and one that described the consequences of the choices that are made. The setting was realistic and you could see the reality in each word that Alana used. Alana did not attempt to go over the head of the reader, but she did succeed at getting into this reader's head.
This was a great read, and I am highly anticipating part 2 of this story.
October 13, 2010
LANA WAS I REAL HOOD CHICK.... THAT BEEN THREW ALOT OF STUFF... WHEN DEBO WENT TO JAIL EVERYTHING HAD CHANGE FO THE WORSE... SHE MESS WITH DEBO GUY AND HE START TREATING HER LIKE SHIT.... DEBO WEN TO JAIL FOR FIGHTING ICE CREAM MAN AFTER HE FOUND OUT HE HAD RAPE IS GIRL.... THE BOOK WAS MIND BLOWING GOOD
October 2, 2012
I found this book to be a very exhilarating read with a few twist that had me gasp a few times. Debo was my favorite character & Lana, in my opinion was young & confused. Although, what she did was trifling & Wack was a pure mess all the way around! Aleta did her thing with the pen & I look forward to reading part 2 soon.
Queen Brown
Queen Brown
September 22, 2012
This book was good I'm so mad at that damn wack smh I have love for Debo and that damn Stacy rat and for my girl Lena all around this book had me on my feet keep up the good work
December 26, 2010
Watts in Full Effect!
In this Debut there is valiant effort put forth only to fall short on the editing. The story is a good one that will hold your attention however; I was not impressed with the formatting and size of the book. This was a little different read for me being from NYC and this taking place in CA. the lingo was a lot different but easy to keep up with. This is a fast read and won’t take long to finish.
Lana had a rough start in life and it’s not hard to see why she turned to the streets. She lost her dad before she was born, her mom at age 6, her brother was killed in the streets; this left her to be raised by her aunt. As a teenager she gravitates to the street and starts banging. Lana has hopes and dreams. Those dreams may come to end when she is brutally raped by an associate of her boyfriend Debo.
Lana’s boyfriend Debo comes from a good two parent home. He doesn’t want for anything. Something about the street life just keeps drawing him in. ‘Repping’ for his hood Debo stays decked out. When he meets Lana and the romance kicks in gear, you can feel the love and will be pulling for the two to get it together. After he learns who raped Lana another element is brought to the story and the storyline is kicked up. Tune in to see how he deals with the fact a OG from the hood has raped her.
We follow the story for a few years and get answers on most of the characters. I look forward to see how Author Aleta Williams plans on continuing the story as it was left for a part two. I hope for the next one the editing is tightened up and there are no loose ends. Ms. Williams is putting the west coast on the map. I look forward to reading more from this author as she grows in her writing skills.
SiStar Tea
ARC Book Club Inc.
4 star rating
In this Debut there is valiant effort put forth only to fall short on the editing. The story is a good one that will hold your attention however; I was not impressed with the formatting and size of the book. This was a little different read for me being from NYC and this taking place in CA. the lingo was a lot different but easy to keep up with. This is a fast read and won’t take long to finish.
Lana had a rough start in life and it’s not hard to see why she turned to the streets. She lost her dad before she was born, her mom at age 6, her brother was killed in the streets; this left her to be raised by her aunt. As a teenager she gravitates to the street and starts banging. Lana has hopes and dreams. Those dreams may come to end when she is brutally raped by an associate of her boyfriend Debo.
Lana’s boyfriend Debo comes from a good two parent home. He doesn’t want for anything. Something about the street life just keeps drawing him in. ‘Repping’ for his hood Debo stays decked out. When he meets Lana and the romance kicks in gear, you can feel the love and will be pulling for the two to get it together. After he learns who raped Lana another element is brought to the story and the storyline is kicked up. Tune in to see how he deals with the fact a OG from the hood has raped her.
We follow the story for a few years and get answers on most of the characters. I look forward to see how Author Aleta Williams plans on continuing the story as it was left for a part two. I hope for the next one the editing is tightened up and there are no loose ends. Ms. Williams is putting the west coast on the map. I look forward to reading more from this author as she grows in her writing skills.
SiStar Tea
ARC Book Club Inc.
4 star rating
January 12, 2013
Out of all the books I read from this Author, I was not totally impressed with this one. I do have a suggestion that I think would be helpful for anyone who is pursuing a writing career. Taking a basic English grammar class would be very helpful. In all four books, the author had problem differentiating her homophone, antonym and synonym. I enjoy urban reading, so I understand the difference of shopping off certain words, what I have a problem with the misused of words that sound the same but has different meanings for example: there/their, saw/sew, three/tree and the list goes on.
January 11, 2014
This book was more about gangs which is not my cup of tea but still a very interesting story. the ladies in this book was wild and needed guidance IMO. Setting people up and killing people because you look at them the wrong way and they wear the wrong colors in you opinion doesn't make it right. Loving someone who is not a part a your so called set or just smiling at someone can get you your death is so beyond. What a world we live in. Good book thanks for another good read Aleta.
November 28, 2011
This book was so much more than what I expected...The read was
awesome. A tale from the hood with some suspense and mystery, a life
lesson, a love lesson and even a bible lesson...I promise you I could
not put it down til I was done. I'm definitely wanting more...Can't wait for ZipCodez II
awesome. A tale from the hood with some suspense and mystery, a life
lesson, a love lesson and even a bible lesson...I promise you I could
not put it down til I was done. I'm definitely wanting more...Can't wait for ZipCodez II
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews