Review of Dead Children's Playground

[Onyinyechi Orji]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Dead Children's Playground" by Dawn C Crouch.]

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5 out of 5 stars

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Arik Ensminger is a twenty-one-year-old boy who did not care about following his family's medical profession, and although he was sent to medical school, he took his hobby, photography, very seriously. He is a strong-willed boy who is determined to live. His parents were Reinhardt and Mutti. He had a grandfather named Opa and a brother named Max. They were of German descent, and Opa was a staunch Nazi. Opa dedicated his life to resurrecting the old Nazi soldiers through diabolical means.

Reinhardt followed in his father's footsteps like a lamb before the slaughter, although Reinhardt was softer towards his children than Opa. Jude Scrimshaw is a neighbor of Arik Ensminger, who allegedly committed suicide by blowing himself up. His daughter, Willa, was a friend of Arik's. One could consider them a couple in a relationship. Der Sensenmann is the spirit of death who takes on different forms at different times. A certain cave leading to a children's playground symbolized death, and it was in the lab leading to this cave that Reinhardt and Opa carried out most of their work. Arik's grandfather, Opa, dedicated his life to an experiment that sought to maximize human strength and test the limits of their endurance. In the process, there were dire consequences, as the reader would discover.

Dead Children's Playground by Dawn C Crouch is a fictional book about dishonesty, scientific objectivity, hatred and love, and life and death. Arik also symbolizes a clash of cultures. When asked by his grandfather if he was American or German, he was unable to give a decisive answer. Hate was a very common theme in the book that probably needs to be discussed a bit more than the rest. Arik hated medical school because he was forced to be a part of it. As said earlier, his dream was to become a photographer, but his family, particularly Reinhardt and Opa, vehemently refused to let him embark on any other professional path aside from medicine. Reinhardt despises his next-door neighbor, Jude Scrimshaw, because he is too loud and annoying. Until he discovered Willa as a prodigy in the medical field, he chose to have nothing to do with the Scrimshaw family.

There wasn't anything worth disliking in this awesome read. Opa hated the Americans even though they took their families as refugees. His goal was for the Nazis to take over, even years after the war. He employed illegal means of achieving his goal and worked tirelessly at his lab. With Opa, the theme of scientific objectivity is intertwined, as he did not mind losing a limb or a family member to achieve his scientific goal, all for the "greater good" of science. The ghost girl, who can take many forms, is a powerful symbol of the theme of death in Der Sensenmann. Ironically, death served a just purpose toward the climax of the book.

The plot is set in the United States of America. A place called Rocket City hosted the majority of the plot. Arik's medical school was located in New Orleans, where the author of the book hails from. The book is an enjoyable one and is recommended to lovers of supernatural fiction as well as others who just want to read good fiction. I rate it five out of five. The book was void of errors, which shows it was carefully and meticulously edited.

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Dead Children's Playground
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[Amy Luman]

I really do like the plot of this book. Everyone wants to believe that all Nazis and their terrible agenda are gone, but that just isn’t the case. I also feel bad for Aria since he is forced to follow a career path he doesn’t like.

[Online Concept]

I enjoyed your review very much and although I feel bad for Aria too, I think no matter where we're from, we shouldn't let anyone decide our future for us like he did. Opa seems like an interesting character to me. The fact that he was able to sacrifice anything and anyone to achieve his goal is appalling.

[Yasmine M]

Thank you for the review. However, I will pass on this one. It looks like there are too many sinister things going on, especially with Opa.

[Mercy Sos Christopher]

The storyline is beautiful and is indeed thrilling. I will really have fun reading it. Thanks for the review.

[R_becca]

I was attracted by the book's title and cover art. This has a really interesting plot. I liked reading your review.

[Ceeco2002]

There is nothing greater and more powerful than a man with his own dreams and passions. Parents need to understand that for their children's sake.