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*Long Way Down* by Jason Reynolds follows Will, a 15 year old teen who decides to avenge his brother Shawn‘s murder by following his neighborhood‘s “rules” of revenge. Shawn devasted of his brothers murder, he decides to follow rule number 3 which is revenge. Shawn that night found his brothers gun and slept with it, knowing that tomorrow he was going to kill the guy who he think murdered Shawn. When Will arrives to the guys apartment.

Book 18 of 2024! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wow, this was quite the heavy read, even though it‘s a YA novel written in verse. Will‘s brother is shot dead near his own house in an unnamed city. Will is set on following The Rules of the street: No crying, no snitching, get revenge. As he takes his brother‘s weapon to get revenge, he meets several people in the elevator who may or may not influence his decision.

This is a reread after seeing the musical. My first read was the original when it was first published. This go round I picked up the graphic novel version which I preferred. The illustrations really added to the story and because the book was written in verse, I think all the wording was kept rather than simplified as is often the case with graphic novels?! ❤️
PS The musical was awesome!

Caught up with Jason Reynold‘s talk at the Olney Theatre from last night over my morning coffee while on vacay. I can‘t wait to see this show next weekend ❤️ ❤️❤️

I am so freaking excited about this debut musical! I purchased tickets for the end of the month. Eeek! 🤗

Boyz n the Hood meets A Christmas Carol in this powerful and moving young adult novel in verse about a young man contemplating his response, revenge, and “the rules” his brother, just killed in a shooting, taught him. Our bookstore is helping a local teacher give away 60 copies of this book to his students for summer reading!

Beautiful.

A great, evocative read - definitely going to use it in my English class.

Well done and really drives home the point of circular violence.

The Long Way down is a story about a teenager that has a tough life. His brother died by a shooting. He takes his brothers gun out of his bedroom to kill the person. He‘s certain is the murderer. I really like books that are written in verse form. It‘s easy to read. This story is written in first person. This author had a few years before finally writing the book, this book was written like poetry, but reads like rap

Powerful. Painful. Stark. Brilliant. I am curious as to how this reads in other formats. The art in the graphic novel however is fantastic.

First ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ of 2023. Highly recommend!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A painful, and impactful, rendering of the cycle of violence. This is a story of loss and revenge; of breaking the cycle; breaking the “Rules.” Will is determined to avenge his murdered brother. Gun in waistband, he descends the elevator of his apartment building, encountering ghosts from his past, all lost to gun violence. Beautifully, and devastatingly, illustrated in watercolor. Absolute chills.

“The rules weren‘t meant to be broken. They were meant for the broken to follow.”

A graphic novel of a YA book. This one was powerful, and I felt the art style and use of colors really portrayed Will‘s emotions as he mourns (and decides to avenge) his brother. When Will gets on an elevator to leave his apartment building, gun in tow, he meets a ghost - a victim of gun violence - on every floor on the way down. He learns how the cycle of violence and “rules” he follows have so many victims. Will he end it, or follow it?

#BlackHistoryMonth Recommendations
Day 4 YA fiction

This novel in verse tackles a hard subject (gun violence) in a fresh and beautiful way. Absorbing to the point you will want to read it in one sitting.

Wonderful book.

#adventrecommends

I missed yesterday so two today! I pretty much love anything Jason Reynolds writes but this one is a favorite. A powerful novel in verse. If you‘ve never read anything by Reynolds I would recommend starting with this one.

Great book!

I like how this book was full of poems and it was in a time span of 6 minutes.

Such a good contemporary book that highlights gun violence.

#2022Book102
Jason Reynolds is one of the best YA writers out there and every word of this book is poetry. Literally and metaphorically. He doesn't know how to write a bad sentence and my students and I loved every minute of reading this book.

In the point a view of a brother whose brother was shot and killed. Talks about gun violence and dealing with the aftermath and what to do.

👍🏻

A story about this boys brother who was shot and and different rules that play along with that. It‘s based on hun violence and how to handle these situations. Set up like a poem. Set up on an elevator.

Focuses on gun violence and how it effects family members, a dark book but important topics are covered.

I haven‘t read the original so don‘t know how this compares but this adaptation really drew me in. Highly recommended and I can see why it has won so many awards including a Kate Greenaway Medal (which is why it popped back up on my radar so to speak…). Hope my next read is as good as this!

Interesting read.

The watercolour art in this graphic adaptation is beautiful.

Jason Reynolds delivers another winner. A terrific novel told in verse, about a teenage boy wanting to revenge after his brother is shot dead. Reynolds masterfully balances readability with heavy issues like gun violence, revenge, and gang. And that‘s an ending that I like. I read the graphic novel adaptation immediately after, great artwork that kept me glued to the pages.
#AuthorAMonth

5 ⭐️!

I'd been highly anticipating this for a while and it didn't disappoint!

I am raising money to purchase books for my classroom, including several by Jason Reynolds—a student favorite! Please consider donating and use code LIFTOFF to have your donation matched! I teach wonderful kids and would love to get even more books into their hands. 📚🙏🏻 https://tinyurl.com/BeeneReads

I love novels in verse! This was intense. A life changing surreal set of encounters, all in under 60 seconds. #AuthorAMonth #BBRCTeenAngstImaginrDragons @Soubhiville @LibrarianRyan

This is beautiful. It's a novel in verse. And it's like Scrooged (or A Christmas Carol whatev) in an elevator. Read it. Or listen to Jason Reynolds read it. Whatever floats your boat.

#AuthorAMonth @Soubhiville

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

#AuthorAMonth

In an interview Jason Reynolds described this as being like a modern day Christmas Carol. That definitely describes it well.

Will has been brought up knowing revenge as a way of life, so when his brother is shot he knows he has to take out the guy who shot him. On his way out of his apartment he‘s met by ghosts of people from his life who are all dead.

This is a novel in verse, with lots of awards.

I got to talk to Jason Reynold today! He is such an amazing advocate for literature and I love love love his books!

Finished with this book and my first goal for #20in4

This book was so enthralling and I‘m amazed at home much happens to Will in a minute or two. I love the way it was told in verse. It was amazing.

Gut wrenching story of the downward spiral of cyclical violence superbly illustrated for additional layers of context.

💔 The Rules: No crying. No snitching. Take revenge. I remember learning about these rules from my students in Las Vegas. Thank the Maker for sending Jason Reynolds. I hope my former students have found him.

Just started the graphic novel edition of Long Way Down and I‘m already blown away by the imagery from Danica Novgorodoff.

Only my second physical book of the year.

I saw a review on Goodreads where some said that Reynolds wields verse like a weapon. So true. This is like shot to the gut. Powerful. And that ending! 😱😵

There isn't an option for the graphic novel on here, unfortunately, but it's really well done. I had read and listened to the original book a couple years ago and it was nice to revisit it in this third format. I recommend looking for the content warnings beforehand, as it's quite heavy and could be super triggering.

Loved this story, loved the author‘s note too. I think this is the graphic novel cover, though I listened on audio.

Today‘s #FavoriteSignedBooks is from BEA in 2017 (I think). Such a fun weekend, so many amazing authors. I cannot tell you how excited I was to say hello to Jason Reynolds, truly a wonderful, inspiring ambassador for young readers, and to have a chance to tell him not only how much I enjoyed his books but also, more importantly, how much students love his books. This one is a favorite!

Have a favorite signed book? I‘d love to hear about it!

I listened to an interview with Reynolds. He said: if kids today watch video clips and that‘s how long they can or want to focus, then he needs to adapt his writing to that. Written in verse, you can read the book in one sitting. Reynolds communicates with kids on their level: no talking down, no artificial youth language, but poetry. No wise words or solutions either, no teaching a lesson - just the feelings, all the lost lives and the grief.

This book was nothing short of genius. Told like a long form poem, the story took me on a journey that had me crying, laughing out loud, and chilled to the core. Reynolds made me feel so much in so few words. The whole concept for the book - I can‘t give too much away! - felt so unique, while also making me think of other favorite books that ask the big questions. I‘ll be thinking about this for a long time. Thanks @LiteraryinLawrence !

This was a brilliant book told in verse. It portrays the chain-reaction of shooting someone and what is seen as revenge. The style is stripped down, but still provides beautiful passages and imagery.