Play the Game

This was an interesting one! I only knew about it after selecting a copy for my library's collection, but I was surprised at how quickly I read this one and connected to the story. This is definitely for fans of restorative justice. Play the Game follows VZ who is coping with the loss of his best fri......more

An intriguing novel which opens with a murder mystery premise and ends in a rather unconventional way, bending expectations within the genre and raising important questions about race, justice, and coping with loss. Allen's writing style here is smooth and engaging, with no noticeable awkwardness. E......more

Finally! As a restorative justice program director at a community nonprofit, people occasionally ask me if I have any restorative justice-themed book recommendations that would be engaging for young adults--and I'm thrilled to finally be able to say yes. Play the Game weaves the vision and reality of......more

They were three best friends - but Ed was shot in the parking lot of the restaurant where he and VZ worked, and Jack is a suspect in the murder of Singer, the man who killed Ed. VZ knows the biases police have, but can playing the game Ed created for a contest help VZ think creatively enough to put......more

𝐅𝐮𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐨𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐠 Bound by the Book Let's Be Friends on IG “𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐮𝐩? 𝐈𝐟 𝐰𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐮𝐩, 𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐞 [𝐡𝐞] 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐦𝐮𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥.” 𝙩𝙬: drug use (marijuana), murder, prejudice & racism 𝐐𝐮𝐢......more