Pen or Discipline (Unabridged‪)‬

The Alameda sisters, raised by a no-nonsense mother, grow up to be single parents in very different circumstances. Dorothy's husband vanishes when her son, Malachi, is very young while Danielle's husband is killed by a drunk driver, leaving her a widow with her son, Jacob, to raise alone. Both women fear their sons will follow the path of others in their urban community and end up in a gang, on drugs, involved in crime, or in jail. They feel the responsibility of raising a son alone is almost an impossible task. For Dorothy there is a lot of resentment because Malachi's father went on to raise a new family. Danielle on the other hand is depressed and grief-stricken because she has never stopped missing her husband. Pen or Discipline by Dominique Wilkins is not a happily-ever-after tale. Its ending is all-too-real. The book raises questions of best parenting styles. It examines the stresses of single parenthood and where single parents can go to get help. Pen or Discipline will engage the reader from start to finish. In it, readers' clubs will find a lot to identify with and material for candid discussion.