Playground: The Mostly True Story of a Former Bully Audiobook

" I love 50 Cent and his music. I will admit, I did not expect much from this book, as I thought "How does a rap artist go from writing songs to writing a book?" but 50 Cent pulled it off. "

" Interesting. Wraps up a little too neatly, but I don't disagree with the message that bullies can be redeemed. Good for 50 Cent for using his celebrity in this way. "

" An engaging, quick read! Especially good for readers looking for stories about bullying or characters who like to make movies. "

" I'm embarrassed by how quickly I got hooked on this book. Playground is the story of a troubled outcast who, through an act of violence, goes from being a school-nobody to the school bully. Told from a first-person perspective, this story uses Butterball's sessions with his therapist as the starting point for his tangential descriptions of his life. While he faces the challenges that many middle school students tackle--feeling left out, poor self-image, peer pressure and popularity struggles--his is somewhat unique as it centers on his life in a suburb of New York City. His mother has moved him away from the more commonly discussed pressures of urban life for young, African-American men (although his encounters with his rascal dad who still scrapes by in the inner-city still touch on some of these distinct challenges). I think this book in many ways touched on some new issues that aren't as widely discussed. For example, how does a child who grew up in the inner-city respond to a life in the suburbs? How does a family find balance between it's traditional family history and surging forward with a new path? And how do parents seek out a better future without compromising family life? While the path of this book is somewhat straightforward (although one twist regarding Butterball's mother caught me slightly off-guard and was, I thought, an interesting way to discuss identity in our contemporary world. I will have a copy of this book in my middle school classroom. While I imagine it was not 50 Cent, but a ghostwriter who crafted the actual story, the draw of a rapper author and a new urban story is one that I think would appeal to my own urban scholars. "

" Well played 50 Cent. I was expecting a train wreck and got a pretty good story. Tied up a little too neatly at the end, but still. "

" Fast-paced, realistic story about a bully seeking to reform himself. Fans of Alan Sitomer's High Hop High books will probably like this. "

" Good urban literature. Strong message for those who are struggling with fitting in or bullying. Recommended for young African Americans, especially males. "

" This book was better than I expected. The read was quick and the characters were compelling, but the story stayed surface-level for a good portion of the time. I wouldn't say this book was bad, just nothing to get super excited about. I have some students at school who would likely love this one. "

" This was okay, it seemed to me like a lot was missing and it kind of ended abruptly. You could tell this was not written by a professional but it doesn't take away from the story at all. "

" I thought it was a good book because it was interesting to read about 50 Cent's life as a kid and what he did that made him a bully. "

" Look, this book isn't "good," per say, but it's good for the audience I bought it for: my 14-year-old nephew who is always trying to "look tough". Not the best narrative on this subject, but I think because the author is 50 Cent, it's more likely to be heard. "

" this is an important YA book about bullying and I will definitely recommend it to teens and teachers. it's well-written, too, and I love the art interspersed with the short chapters. "

" a touching story that i will not forget "

" This is a wonderfully written story on the making of a bully. "

" WOW. This book was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO AMAZING!!!!!!! Probably one of my favorite books of the year. The message in this book was so great for our society. I reccomend this book to EVERYONE!! "