Review: Playtime by Stephanie Fox

I won this book in a giveaway by bookw0rmtales.wordpress.com and I was so happy! It was the first thing I'd won in a giveaway and the story seemed unique from anything I was used to reading. The book is very short, only 179 pages long so it didn't take me long to finish it. 

Overall, the book is very dark and there are a lot of serious issues written about in  it such as abuse and mental illness. I would say that this book isn't suitable for anyone who may be upset by these issues or who prefers to read happier stories. The main character is Leo Cassona and most of the book is written from his voice- him talking to a police officer about what happened. You don't find out what happened until right near the end so that made me want to read on- to hear the terrible, unforgivable thing that Leo did. In my opinion, the book being written this way was a good thing because it made Leo as a character more believable and gave an insight into his mind which was at times so sad but at others quite scary too. There are also places in the book in which you read other people's statements: family and friends an people who knew Leo. This is great because you then get to judge te main character from a different light, as others saw him. As well as this, there are diary entries and drawings that Leo himself created and these make the book so different in a good way. 

However, I personally found the plot of the book so extremely sad. I am not totally oblivious to the fact that horrible things that happen in the story do happen in real life but to read about it was quite difficult. I don't generally stay away from sad books but this one  had no break from upsetting revelations. Some people might not find it as difficult to read as me, and I am not saying that it is a bad book because of this, just that certain people wouldn't enjoy it. 

This doesn't stop me from acknowledging the fact that the book is cleverly written and is really frank and open about issues that maybe aren't written about enough. Playtime is a book that gives an insight into a world that some aren't in themselves. Stephanie Fox has written a book that is unflinching and brave. 

I would recommend this book for 15 years up as there are, as I've said, quite upsetting issues which wouldn't maybe be very nice for younger teenagers to read about. 

You can buy it here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/1906873127/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1387631929&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX110_SY165