The Enemy Has a Face

by Gloria D. Miklowitz

Netta and her family have relocated temporarily from Israel to Los Angeles, and when her seventeen-year-old brother mysteriously disappears, she becomes convinced that he has been abducted by Palestinian terrorists.

Genres: Young Adult

139 pages, Paperback

First published February 7, 2003

About the author

With a relentless concern about contemporary issues and problems that affect teenagers, Gloria D. Miklowitz (USA, b. 1927) examined such topics as rape, suicide, teen marriage, divorce, AIDS, sexual abuse, and racial prejudice in her novels. She helped teen readers look at underground militias, vigilantism, religious cults, steroid use among high school athletes, and the effects of nuclear war. She enabled readers to view the famous battle of Masada from both sides. She also wrote nonfiction on a variety of subjects, from earthquakes and raccoons to President Harry Truman, civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr., and tennis star Tracy Austin.

Reviews

[Justine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book could be very sad at some points. It showed all the different sides of the world in their eyes. I wasn't in class the day that we finished this book so I can't really say anything about its conclusion. I would recommend it to anyone that likes mystery, realistic fiction, and maybe even likes civil rights.

[Lenox · Rating 1 out of 5]

After the book was done I had mixed feelings. The book was kind of a anti-climax. The book was leading up to a big event (which I won't say because of a spoiler). The thing that bothered me about it was that the author was leading up to a small ending that made no sense for the build up that happened. I thought that since the author put so much effort into the book that the end ruined the book. I thought the book would take a different path for the ending and it didn't. I thought that everything happened to fast in the ending and needed to be more details about the situation. Anyway, I thought that I would have liked it more if there was more details and not a huge anti-climax like there was.

[Hillari Morgan · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 Stars ... MAYBE.

So this book was chosen by my students as a read-aloud for our class. I was intrigued by their choice, especially being a Civil Rights Team adviser at our school. A book that centers around Israeli and Palestinian conflict would definitely be a different read. That intrigue, however, turned quickly into a bit of frustration when the book began IN the action. Starting the text in this way, my students insightfully pointed out that we never had the opportunity to meet the character in which the story is based.

Adam, the main character's brother, goes missing and the text spends the entire time guessing why that is and what happens to him. The audience is expected to feel something for Adam and the situation that he may have gotten himself into. It is hard to do that however, as Adam is an illusive character to us. Instead, we spend time getting to know his sister, Netta, with the "getting to know" part being a loosely based description since the extent in which her character is developed, is minimal.

Moving on to the over-arching idea of this book, this next comment is not meant to belittle the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, however the entirety of this text is spent with a back-and-forth of who is in the right of these long-standing issues. I am sure that there is some accuracy to this, with one side feeling they are more entitled to their actions and emotions and the other side feeling the very same way about their position, BUT IT WAS ANNOYING! There was VERY little evidence as to why Adam's disappearance would have been a terrorist attack (the only reason offered was due to the father's job, in which even that was minimally explored). So it just felt like a lot of surface issues that Gloria Miklowitz tried to use to facilitate an entire text on. Basically, a major fail.

SO, while I greatly appreciate the underlying message of this book: prejudice and biased-based behaviors and how it ruins lives, it just was not implemented well. No character development, no rational explanation of ideas and concepts, no real plot development or action, equals a pretty lousy execution.

[Harper Averitt · Rating 2 out of 5]

To me this book was a letdown, I understand that this wasn't exactly supposed to be a suspense type of book, but this book was very disappointing. From barely knowing Adam-then he goes missing, too wasting and writing scenarios in the book that were just a waste, to put in when the end of the book was such a letdown. I understand what the author was trying to do, to try to have a plot twist, but this, in my opinion, was the saddest plot twist try that I've ever read. Also to me, the title of the book doesn't have anything to do with the book, because she really didn't describe in detail what the enemies looked like. I do not recommend this book, it was a serious letdown.

[Aodhan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Now that I'm finished with it, I really don't like it. I gave it an extra star because everything except the ending was ok, and the end of every chapter was a cliffhanger. Except all of the cliffhangers led to one of the worst endings of any book I have ever read. It was not what I expected to happen, and it made no sense. Also, I didn't like how I never actually met Adam. He wasn't even in the house when the book started, so it was hard to be sympathetic to somebody who is practically a stranger. Overall, this was not a good book.

[Grace Stinson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave it one star for the pure fact I don't think you ever don't like any aspects of a book but it definitely wasn't my favorite

[Josh Girard]

This book was really bad and boring. All the build up and then the ending ruined it for me and I am sure that is the same for my classmates.

[Keann · Rating 1 out of 5]

To me this book was bad, because throughout the whole book it sounded like it was going to end in a interesting way, but it did't. It just came out with it near the end and then was it was the end. What bothers me the most is that we didn't even get to meet the character that went missing. Like, I did't know if I even liked him or not. He could have been a totally jerk that was mean to everybody or someone that was nice and help people. That is what bothered me the most. I think the book would have been better if we had meet the guy that went missing and it talk a little bit about what happened after they left to bury the guy that died. Like, did they go back to the place where he died or did they stay where they buried him (at home like the father said). I just wished it ended better because it was disappointing in the end. This is what I thought about The Enemy Has a Face.

[Hannah Crabtree · Rating 3 out of 5]

When we were voting on a class book this book definitely sounded the most interesting to us, so we voted for it. I thought the beginning was better then any other part of the book because it explained what was happening (kind of) but when we started to read more the more confusing it got and we didn't really know adam at all. although this book wasn't the best book i have ever read, i i still liked it and it had a lot of meaning in it.

[Sarah K · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, this book was the biggest letdown I have ever read! When picking this book as a class I was thinking there was going to be more action and more details, other than it being trying to find Adam. Which by the way the author never included details on Adam, other than that he was missing,which was very frustrating and disappointing because this book is based around this one boy but yet there is no details on him. Also, in every chapter there was a really great cliffhanger but when you got to the "solution" or "mystery" it was it was another letdown. It was almost like the author had all these big ideas about cliffhangers but had no solution for them. The one thing I really liked about this book was the overall message, that everyone in the world matters!

[Jstanley · Rating 2 out of 5]

This books message was very confusing and the end was very anti-climatic. However I wasn't a fan of the book and I wish It had a little more information about the boy and I also wish that the end had a little more excitement.

[Colby S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought that The Enemy Has a Face was okay, but I didn't like it very much. I get the whole story and everything and what it was about, but the book didn't have any excitement to it. The book was boring, didn't have very much suspense or excitement, and was very plain.

[| Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 Stars

Problems I have with this book:
Netta is a selfish, narrow-minded, self-pitying, prat. (Which would be understandable under the circumstances, but she takes it to the extreme.

We don't ever even ever get to know or meet Adam, only though the eyes/perspectives of Netta and other people.

All that buildup and an ending like that?! What a letdown.

The writing doesn't even connect well with our emotions. It's just Netta wallowing around in her depressing, narrow-minded bubble.

Some Pluses
The writing style is okay?

At least the author put in an effort to portray relations (differences, similarities, etc) between the cultures accurately (I hope) in the book.

Overall
I do not reccomend.

[Roderick Mcgillis · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a well-meaning book about Palestinians and Israelis. I confess that I found the final page moving. However, aside from the polemic, this is not a particularly distinguished book. I found the plot somewhat predictable and the characters without dimension. The prose is flat. I suspect the book might prove useful for some young readers, but it is hardly a gripper.

[Curtis Clark · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book is interesting because it has a good "grabber" and it makes you not want to stop reading because something interesting happens every couple of chapters. Often I would find myself in the middle of the day wondering what will happen next and it would make me want to get home and read. I learned a lot about cutler and it has adventure in it.

[Rose]

Sort of open-ended, like the book would do better in a classroom discussion than just on its own. I guess that's the point, though--to make people discuss the Arab-Israeli conflict instead of just reading about it and going on with life.

[Esteban Contreras]

I think that The Enemy Has a Face is the best mystery book/ fiction I've ever. The novel is about the Hoffman family moving from Israel to Los Angles and the oldest son Adam disappearing outta now where. Netta the sister of Adam meets and befriends a Arab boy at school. Her school is prejudice towards foreign kids and she is towards Palestinians. So her and her family thinks that he was abducted by Palestinian terrorist. I would recommend this book if you are into Mysteries and fiction.

[Saleh MoonWalker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Onvan : The Enemy Has a Face - Nevisande : Gloria D. Miklowitz - ISBN : 0802852610 - ISBN13 : 9780802852618 - Dar 139 Safhe - Saal e Chap : 2003

[Grace Galinski · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a anti-climatic ending?! I can't even begin to say how much I didn't like this ending. I mean, really?!? That's it!?
Looking back at the start of the book, I realize that the author didn't really even introduce us to Adam. So to have the entire book with him missing, is kind of annoying. Since I didn't really know him as a character, I didn't really feel anything when he died. Except, you know, anger since it was so anti-climatic.
I understand that the book is supposed to be more of a lesson kind of. Like a lesson about prejudice, but it just dragged everything out. It dragged him being missing out, it dragged the lesson out, and it kind of made the book a little redundant. I mean, it didn't need 139 pages to understand the lesson, or the book for that matter.
However, I did kind of like the story though. And I'm going to be generous and give it three stars.

[Court · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was a little unimpressed with this book. I expected more on the conflict between Israel and Palestine, and more on the relationship between Netta and Laith. I think the novel was too short to be in depth about the disappearance of Netta's brother and on the relationships between the characters. Having said that, the author did a good job of connecting the conflict and the mystery of Adam's disappearance. I was not kept turning pages. Reading this book felt more like a chore than an activity. The plot was very repetitive, so there wasn't much excitement. It was kind of depressing in a way as well. Basically, the entire story is about Netta coming home each day hoping to hear news of her brother and by the end, you learn that it was all for nought. I gave this story two stars because the theme was well-thought out. Don't judge your enemies before you get to know them. That much was clear. In addition, the twist at the end really brought it together. This book is very current, relating to the ever-lasting conflict between Israel and Palestine. It gives not only an insight to the Israeli side of it but also the Palestinian.

[Eishelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Enemy Has a Face was an okay book. Definately not my favorite. But I liked how the author made you want to keep guessing who did what and what had happened to Adam, the boy missing. I felt every bit of sadness that each character had felt each time Adam was mentioned or even thought of. The one thing I did not like was the fact that there were not as many clues to what had happened to Adam and so for a majority of the novel, nobody has any idea and it's the same thoughts going on in Netta's mind of what happened to her brother over and over again. But other than that, it was okay.

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was really interesting. but not a lot of action. my mother hated this book when i just read the back for her. she told me her biggest fear in her whole life is if her child just went out of the house and never came back and did not answer any phone calls which is exactly what happens in this book. she loves her children too much.

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

My teen's book- she asked me to read it and I truly enjoyed it-quick read-one day, that's all it takes. This book addresses issues of prejudice against Palestinians and their hatred of Israelis after a 17 year old boy disappears.

[Stephanie A. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I endorse Rose's review.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book geared for young adults, but good for anyone to read. It made me realize how little I know or understand about Middle Eastern relationships, even those in the U.S.

[Kimberly H · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was okay overall but the ending was really bad. The ending was not what I expected, as I also read other reviews, everyone was astonished by the ending and did not like it. Adam, the character who went missing never actually portrayed a role in the book, we never read his point of view. Netta was the only one giving her point of view. The author should've gave more detail about what exactly happen when Adam was shot. The ending just needs to be fixed and Admas role, then the book will be great.

[Emmalee McMahon · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is about a girl named Netta. Her 17 year old brother goes missing one night. Netta and her family search for Adam, Netta's brother. Netta is convinced that he was kidnapped by the Middle East.
I did not enjoy this book. I thought it was very slow. The plot line was nit very interesting. There is a little bit of history to be found in this book. I don't think I would recommend this book to young readers.

[Vince Lang · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was not a terrible book. It had an interesting plot and conflict. Although, I did not like the fact that it pretty much told you how the book would end less than 1/2 through the book. If they actually hid the fact that he gets shot by Palestinians, then it would be more interesting.

[Neal Fandek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really, really well done. Like many YA works, this is ostensibly for teens but tackles very adult themes like loneliness, alienation, crime, hatred. Excellent storytelling, propulsive narration. I really recommend it.

[JL Salty · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little flat. Does not elicit compassion for either side of the conflict.