{"id":9997,"date":"2020-06-25T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-06-25T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/?p=9997"},"modified":"2020-06-24T19:47:58","modified_gmt":"2020-06-25T02:47:58","slug":"book-review-playground-zero-by-sarah-relyea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/06\/25\/book-review-playground-zero-by-sarah-relyea\/","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: Playground Zero by Sarah Relyea"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Playground<\/a>
click to purchase<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Title: Playground Zero
Author: Sarah Relyea
Genre: Historical Fiction<\/strong>
My rating:<\/strong> 4 of 5 stars<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sarah Relyea has penned a coming of age story set in one of the United States coming of age periods during the late 1960s. The Raysons family are all children of their time, and the third person alternating point-of-view lets us see the world they live in through their eyes and experience their day-to-day–Tom Rayson is not a likable man.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The book follows the family as they cross the country from the East Coast to the West Coast to establish new lives in Berkley, CA, during the bussing and integration of black students. Sarah Relyea has a great atmosphere for her story; there are many times she painted the events happening with her words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In today’s climate, reading books of this nature might shed some light on social dynamics between races — although there are times I felt a little like there was an unconscious bias for the great work the Raysons were doing regardless of what they did. And Tom is thoroughly unlikeable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary advance copy of this book<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\"Playground
steal and share this<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n

Title: Playground Zero
Author: Sarah Relyea
Genre: Historical Fiction
Release Date: 09 June 2020<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

1968. It’s the season of siren songs and loosened bonds–as well as war, campaign slogans, and assassination. When the Rayson family leaves the East Coast for the gathering anarchy of Berkeley, twelve-year-old Alice embraces the moment in a hippie paradise that’s fast becoming a cultural ground zero. As her family and school fade away in a tear gas fog, the 1960s counterculture brings ambiguous freedom. Guided only by a child’s-eye view in a tumultuous era, Alice could become another casualty–or she could come through to her new family, her developing life.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

About Sarah Relyea:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Sarah
Sarah Relyea<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Sarah Relyea is the author of \u201cPlayground Zero,\u201d a coming-of-age story set in Berkeley in the late 1960s. Sarah left the Berkeley counterculture at age thirteen and processed its effects as a teenager in suburban Los Angeles. She would soon swap California\u2019s psychedelic scene to study English literature at Harvard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sarah has long addressed questions of identity in her writing, including in her book of literary criticism, \u201cOutsider Citizens: The Remaking of Postwar Identity in Wright, Beauvoir, and Baldwin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With her PhD in English and American literature from The Graduate Center, CUNY, Sarah has taught American literature and writing at universities in New York and Taiwan. She remains bicoastal, living in Brooklyn and spending time on the Left Coast.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connect with Sarah Relyea: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Website<\/a> | Facebook<\/a> | Goodreads<\/a> | Amazon<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Title: Playground ZeroAuthor: Sarah RelyeaGenre: Historical FictionMy rating: 4 of 5 stars Sarah Relyea has penned a coming of age story set in one of the United States coming of age periods during the late 1960s. The Raysons family are all children of their time, and the third person alternating point-of-view lets us see the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9990,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[2426,2,3,2424],"tags":[2697,2696],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/BR-Playground-Zero-Banner.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9283,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/03\/25\/trailer-release-playground-zero-by-sarah-relyea\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":0},"title":"Trailer Release: Playground Zero by Sarah Relyea","date":"2020-03-25","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Playground Zero by Sarah Relyea","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/TR-PGZ-Banner.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10002,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/06\/25\/guest-post-sarah-relyea-author-of-playground-zero\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":1},"title":"Guest Post: Sarah Relyea, Author of Playground Zero","date":"2020-06-25","format":false,"excerpt":"Sarah Relyea Berkeley in the 1960s: An Unforgettable Character During recent visits, I have often found the city of Berkeley to be a garden on a hill, lush in its vegetation and breathtaking in its panoramas. In the stunning hill neighborhoods, redwoods soar from a neighbor\u2019s yard as the eye\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Playground Zero by Sarah Relyea","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/GP-Sarah-Relyea.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":10193,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/10\/22\/book-review-uriels-lariat-by-sarah-biglow-molly-zenk\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":2},"title":"Book Review: Uriel's Lariat by Sarah Biglow & Molly Zenk","date":"2020-10-22","format":false,"excerpt":"Title: Uriel's Lariat Author: Sarah Biglow and Molly Zenk Genre: Paranormal Academy Romance My rating: 5 of 5 stars","rel":"","context":"In "Academy Romance"","img":{"alt_text":"Uriel's Lariat by Sarah Biglow and Molly Zenk","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Uriels-Lariat-by-Sarah-Biglow-and-Molly-Zenk.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9733,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/07\/17\/book-review-gabriels-scroll-by-sarah-biglow-and-molly-zenk\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":3},"title":"Book Review: Gabriel's Scroll by Sarah Biglow and Molly Zenk","date":"2020-07-17","format":false,"excerpt":"Gabriel's Scroll by Sarah Biglow & Molly Zenk Title: Gabriel's Scroll (Celestial Academy #2)Author: Sarah Biglow and Molly ZenkGenre: Paranormal Academy RomanceMy rating: 5 of 5 stars The continuing social experiment of a Fallen Archangel enrolled under Miryam bat-Michael's supervision at Celestial Academy continues, and an epic battle between a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Gabriel's Scroll by Sarah Biglow & Molly Zenk","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Gabriels-Scroll-by-Sarah-Biglow-Molly-Zenk.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9444,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2020\/04\/21\/book-review-lucifers-emblem-by-sarah-biglow-and-molly-zenk\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":4},"title":"Book Review: Lucifer's Emblem by Sarah Biglow and Molly Zenk","date":"2020-04-21","format":false,"excerpt":"click to purchase Title: Lucifer's Emblem (Celestial Academy #1)Author: Sarah Biglow & Molly ZenkGenre: Urban FantasyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars This book is excellent for fans of Cassie Clare, and that is saying a ton. Zuri bat-Lucifer is as content hanging out with her friend Damien in Hell as\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book It"","img":{"alt_text":"Lucifers Emblem Sarah Biglow & Molly Zenk","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Lucifers-Emblem.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7801,"url":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/2019\/10\/21\/book-review-sudden-traveler-stories-by-sarah-hall\/","url_meta":{"origin":9997,"position":5},"title":"Book Review: Sudden Traveler: Stories by Sarah Hall","date":"2019-10-21","format":false,"excerpt":"Click to purchase Title: Sudden Traveler: StoriesAuthor: Sarah Hall Genre: Short StoriesPublisher: HarperCollinsMy rating: 5 of 5 stars I received this ARC from TLC Book Tours in exchange for an honest review. Sudden Traveler is a beautiful collection of short stories interwoven by the delicately threaded narrative that speaks the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Book Reviews"","img":{"alt_text":"Sudden Traveler by Sarah Hall","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/ST-Banner.png?fit=851%2C315&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9997"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9997"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9997\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10001,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9997\/revisions\/10001"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/havecoffeeneedbooks.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}