50 Cent

I usually disdain books by celebrities but after sitting at the library book desk looking at this book not being taken out for about a month I decided to give it a shot and see if it was any good. I don't know if it was Mr. Jackson or his co-author Mr. Clark who did the majority of the writing on this one but it was an entertaining read. Sadly, in publishing today it is not always about what you can do but what your claim to fame is that gets you published. This was worth the time and I show more found the parallels between the Duchamp family and their politics and what is happening in society today.

If you are looking for a quick read and a page-turner, this book is for you. Sadly, it did not leave me feeling as if there was any hope or joy to come so I don't think I will be looking to read a sequel as I am looking for hope or happiness in the end to help counteract the reality of our world today. show less

Surprisingly readable and appealing. Marketing this as a "bully reforms" book is a bit misleading (Butterball is himself bullied, and the violent incident in question is him turning on his friend in shame and rage, rather than a systematic victimization which is more the hallmark of bullying), but the message of owning your own weaknesses speaks to anyone who feels isolated and persecuted. The language rings true for urban middle schoolers (complete with liberal profanity) but is at heart show more somewhat wholesome and innocent. Recommended. show less

A surprisingly good entry into the multicultural fiction/street-lit genre. 50 Cent does a nice job telling the story, only revealing what happens as the protagonist is able to reveal it to his therapist, and perhaps to himself. Burton, aka "Butterball" is in trouble. He's just beaten up a boy who used to be his friend on the playground with a sock full of batteries. Using great narrative and dialogue, 50 Cent slowly reveals Butterball's story, not only what happened on the playground but show more what happened in his life to cause him to act in such a way. He takes a bully and makes us see him as a confused, angry, scared and messed-up kid with a heart and a lot of potential. show less

Thirteen-year-old Butterball doesn’t have much going for him. He’s teased mercilessly about his weight. He hates the Long Island suburb his mom moved them to and wishes he still lived with his dad in the city. And now he’s stuck talking to a totally out-of-touch therapist named Liz.

Liz tries to uncover what happened that day on the playground—a day that landed one kid in the hospital and Butterball in detention. Butterball refuses to let her in on the truth, and while he evades her show more questions, he takes readers on a journey through the moments that made him into the playground bully he is today.

This devastating yet ultimately redemptive story is told in voice-driven prose and accented with drawings and photographs, making it a natural successor to The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.

Loosely inspired by 50 Cent’s own adolescence, and written with his fourteen-year-old son in mind, Playground is sure to captivate wide attention—and spark intense discussion show less