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Long Way Down
by
1 hour, 43 minutes
An ode to Put the Damn Guns Down, this is New York Times bestseller Jason Reynolds’s fiercely stunning novel that takes place in sixty potent seconds—the time it takes a kid to decide whether or not he’s going to murder the guy who killed his brother.
A cannon. A strap.
A piece. A biscuit.
A burner. A heater.
A chopper. A gat.
A hammer
A tool
for RULE
Or, y ...more
An ode to Put the Damn Guns Down, this is New York Times bestseller Jason Reynolds’s fiercely stunning novel that takes place in sixty potent seconds—the time it takes a kid to decide whether or not he’s going to murder the guy who killed his brother.
A cannon. A strap.
A piece. A biscuit.
A burner. A heater.
A chopper. A gat.
A hammer
A tool
for RULE
Or, y ...more
Hardcover, 306 pages
Published
October 24th 2017
by Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books
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Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
wow wow wow wow i loved this so much. i've read several books written in verse now and this one was superior to all the ones i've read before. the characters were fleshed out so well and the story itself was engaging and rather suspenseful. i highly recommend this if you're looking to try a book written in this style.
Me on Page 1: Oh great, another novel in verse.
Me on Page, like, 5: HOLY SHIT.
Then I read the whole thing in one sitting.
Incredibly powerful, beautifully written. Reynolds doesn't use the device of verse as a crutch; he wields it like a weapon. I think I held my breath for the entire book, and the ending left me gasping. Truly unforgettable.
Me on Page, like, 5: HOLY SHIT.
Then I read the whole thing in one sitting.
Incredibly powerful, beautifully written. Reynolds doesn't use the device of verse as a crutch; he wields it like a weapon. I think I held my breath for the entire book, and the ending left me gasping. Truly unforgettable.
Click here to watch a video review of this book on my channel, From Beginning to Bookend.
A haunting cautionary tale delivered in verse, in which fifteen-year-old Will is forced to consider the potential consequences of his actions as he, armed with a gun and seeking revenge, waits for the elevator in his building to reach the ground floor.
THEN THE YELLOW TAPE
that says DO NOT CROSS
gets put up, and there's nothing
left to do but go home.
That tape lets people know
that this is a murder scene,
as ...more
A haunting cautionary tale delivered in verse, in which fifteen-year-old Will is forced to consider the potential consequences of his actions as he, armed with a gun and seeking revenge, waits for the elevator in his building to reach the ground floor.
THEN THE YELLOW TAPE
that says DO NOT CROSS
gets put up, and there's nothing
left to do but go home.
That tape lets people know
that this is a murder scene,
as ...more
If you're in a slump and you want a quick interesting read, I would totally recommend this book!
It's all about the cycle of violence and written in verse. Really liked it!
It's all about the cycle of violence and written in verse. Really liked it!
Uncle Mark should’ve just bought his camera and shot his stupid movie after the first day. Unfortunately, he never shot anything ever again.
But my father did.
This was incredible. Not only is it so emotional and well-developed, but oh my god, the writing is so good.
Ellen Hopkins’ use of verse and poetry is dead and Jason Reynolds killed it, personally, by himself. The double meanings alone are perfect. Jason Reynolds has a way with double meanings. Look at the top quote. A camera shoots. A man ...more
240 pages
67 seconds
7 floors
6 visitors
Each with a piece
of the story
not known
until now.
Will grieving
his brother
with a
gun
and a
target
thinking he knows
what he has to do
following
The Rules
wondering
what
to do
who
to be
and what
comes next.
Jason Reynolds is masterful in the way he can use such sparse language in these free verse poems for such a powerful and emotional impact. I'm going to be talking about and sharing this book for a very long time.
Jason's skill at putting words together that grab your h ...more
67 seconds
7 floors
6 visitors
Each with a piece
of the story
not known
until now.
Will grieving
his brother
with a
gun
and a
target
thinking he knows
what he has to do
following
The Rules
wondering
what
to do
who
to be
and what
comes next.
Jason Reynolds is masterful in the way he can use such sparse language in these free verse poems for such a powerful and emotional impact. I'm going to be talking about and sharing this book for a very long time.
Jason's skill at putting words together that grab your h ...more
This was so so emotional and brutal and just wow. I'm kind of torn with what to think though because I didn't really understand the ending?! I read it twice and I'm still not entirely sure what happened. MAYBE THIS IS JUST ME!??
Anyway! It's a book about violence and murder and it's so freaking sad. Basically Will's brother Shawn was just shot and killed and Will gets his gun and goes out for revenge. But he gets in the elevator to go downstairs and shoot this guy...and the elevator just fills wi ...more
Anyway! It's a book about violence and murder and it's so freaking sad. Basically Will's brother Shawn was just shot and killed and Will gets his gun and goes out for revenge. But he gets in the elevator to go downstairs and shoot this guy...and the elevator just fills wi ...more
“you coming?”
that was an incredible way to start btat if i do say so myself. go read this book. now.
that was an incredible way to start btat if i do say so myself. go read this book. now.
Such a fast and powerful read. Wow.
Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/
In case you haven’t heard, jasonwritesbooks(.com). More specifically, jasonwritesIMPORTANTbooks. Books that are RELEVANT and NOW and REAL and HEARTBREAKING. Books that make my non-book-lovin’ kid not fight me when it comes to reading. Books that give a voice to a population who so often is rendered voiceless. Books that when I muttered to myself on Sunday morning “what should I read next?” had said non-book-lovin’ kid running to his ba ...more
In case you haven’t heard, jasonwritesbooks(.com). More specifically, jasonwritesIMPORTANTbooks. Books that are RELEVANT and NOW and REAL and HEARTBREAKING. Books that make my non-book-lovin’ kid not fight me when it comes to reading. Books that give a voice to a population who so often is rendered voiceless. Books that when I muttered to myself on Sunday morning “what should I read next?” had said non-book-lovin’ kid running to his ba ...more
Absolutely genius writing & storytelling, plus so much heart it will drive you to your knees.
Dec 19, 2018
may ❀
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
300-pgs,
standalones,
real-problems,
perfection,
my-heart,
male-pov,
magic-realism,
library,
i-am-trash,
ded
this was incredible.
the writing. the composition. the way jason reynolds narrated it. the emotion. the power. i am floored(lol)
seriously the concept of the plot is so fascinating and unique. i love the family history, the stories told in such a short time, the depth of pain and emotion that is only glimpsed for a few seconds bc you can't show emotion when you gotta follow the rules
how jason reynolds told the stories of so many lives in 1 minute (or 1 hour and 43 minutes, depending on how you l ...more
the writing. the composition. the way jason reynolds narrated it. the emotion. the power. i am floored
seriously the concept of the plot is so fascinating and unique. i love the family history, the stories told in such a short time, the depth of pain and emotion that is only glimpsed for a few seconds bc you can't show emotion when you gotta follow the rules
how jason reynolds told the stories of so many lives in 1 minute (or 1 hour and 43 minutes, depending on how you l ...more
That was incredibly powerful. I can’t wait to read more from this author.
5 stars
“I SWEAR SOMETIMES
it feels like God be flashing photos of his children, awkward, amazing, tucked in his wallet for the world to see. But the world don't wanna see no kids, and God ain't no pushy parent so he just folds and snaps us shut.”
Heartbreaking. In the best possible way, this book was utterly heartbreaking.
When Wil's brother is killed in a gang related shooting, he does the only thing he knows how to do: follow the neighborhood rules. So he gets a gun and decides to kill the ...more
“I SWEAR SOMETIMES
it feels like God be flashing photos of his children, awkward, amazing, tucked in his wallet for the world to see. But the world don't wanna see no kids, and God ain't no pushy parent so he just folds and snaps us shut.”
Heartbreaking. In the best possible way, this book was utterly heartbreaking.
When Wil's brother is killed in a gang related shooting, he does the only thing he knows how to do: follow the neighborhood rules. So he gets a gun and decides to kill the ...more
I wish this was written in a traditional format, I just don't seem to click with a story as much whenever it's written in verse.
It was still a beautiful read and I definitely appreciate the message of it.
It was still a beautiful read and I definitely appreciate the message of it.
I found the concept of this book very interesting, maybe the first of this kind for me. I'll admit it, at the beginning I was a little confused about the way this book was written. It was not about the fact that it was written in verses. I will just tell you that you will most surely understand when you will read it if you didn't already because I don't want to give any kind of spoilers. The pleasure of discovering it all by yourself is one of the best, for us, the readers.
The subject was about
...more
I downloaded this intending on possibly getting to it sometime, but I opened it up out of curiosity and ended up reading the entire thing in about an hour.
I don't have too much to say other than I think this is a really effective coming of age story about how violence and toxic masculinity affects so many young black teens. Reynolds writes really honestly and the directness of this is such a well-needed nudge in the side.
My only issue is that I struggled with the plot of this book a bit becaus ...more
I don't have too much to say other than I think this is a really effective coming of age story about how violence and toxic masculinity affects so many young black teens. Reynolds writes really honestly and the directness of this is such a well-needed nudge in the side.
My only issue is that I struggled with the plot of this book a bit becaus ...more
“ANOTHER THING ABOUT THE RULES
They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken
to follow.”
― Jason Reynolds, Long Way Down
Long Way Down is a novel written in verse that tells the story of fifteen-year-old Will who seeks to venge his murdered brother Shawn. But as he takes the elevator down, with a gun tucked in his pants, it stops on each floor and a ghost from Will's past enters, all victims of gun violence, but will that be enough to change his mind ?
This was a powerful and unique ...more
They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken
to follow.”
― Jason Reynolds, Long Way Down
Long Way Down is a novel written in verse that tells the story of fifteen-year-old Will who seeks to venge his murdered brother Shawn. But as he takes the elevator down, with a gun tucked in his pants, it stops on each floor and a ghost from Will's past enters, all victims of gun violence, but will that be enough to change his mind ?
This was a powerful and unique ...more
Really powerful and unputdownable.
![destiny ♡⚔♡ [howling libraries]](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1514747508p2/15335689.jpg)
“ANOTHER THING ABOUT THE RULES:
They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken to follow.”
I’ve always loved stories written in verse, so when I heard about this own-voice tale of the struggles that toxic masculinity and systemic racism place upon young black men, I was immediately interested. I wanted to focus on supporting as many new-to-me black authors as possible in February, and Jason Reynolds was at the very top of my list. This man has a writing voice that absolutely need ...more
Extremely powerful and important. I absolutely loved the poetry.
Oct 09, 2017
joey (thoughts and afterthoughts)
rated it
it was amazing
Shelves:
arc-review,
physical-arc
*incoherent screeching here*
Is this one of the first verse books I've read? Yep. And damnit to hell because Long Way Down just set the bar pretty high for other poetry books.
Speaking to the verse (and I don't know if all poetry is like this so I could be grossly misguided on this front), what I appreciated the most was how it read like a fully formed story stripped of frivolity where only the bare-bones -- the meat and potatoes -- of the story remained. It's almost wizardry how so much power ca ...more
Is this one of the first verse books I've read? Yep. And damnit to hell because Long Way Down just set the bar pretty high for other poetry books.
Speaking to the verse (and I don't know if all poetry is like this so I could be grossly misguided on this front), what I appreciated the most was how it read like a fully formed story stripped of frivolity where only the bare-bones -- the meat and potatoes -- of the story remained. It's almost wizardry how so much power ca ...more
Short, but so powerful and thought-provoking. A must read IMO!
The entire book is written in verse and covers the time span of 60 seconds, all starting with an elevator ride.
Who gets on, and more importantly who gets off, is what makes this read so powerful.
Storytelling at it's best!!
The entire book is written in verse and covers the time span of 60 seconds, all starting with an elevator ride.
Who gets on, and more importantly who gets off, is what makes this read so powerful.
Storytelling at it's best!!
I read this book because it was suggested to me as a YA diversity book. I really enjoyed it. This book is written in a poetic form and is easy to follow.
The main character is fifteen-year-old Will and he witnesses his brother Shawn get shot and killed. This makes will mad and he wants revenge so gets a gun and rides an elevator up to the seventh floor to kill his brother's murder.
As the elevator travels upward it keeps stopping and new "ghosts" (people from his life that have passed away) get ...more
The main character is fifteen-year-old Will and he witnesses his brother Shawn get shot and killed. This makes will mad and he wants revenge so gets a gun and rides an elevator up to the seventh floor to kill his brother's murder.
As the elevator travels upward it keeps stopping and new "ghosts" (people from his life that have passed away) get ...more
This book was absolutely phenomenal.
The audiobook, which is narrated by Reynolds, was especially good. I often have trouble with books written in verse because I read them in my own voice, and that sh*t is NOT beautiful to listen to (sorry to everyone who watches my channel...). I'll also get hung up on which words to emphasize, the proper cadence of phrases, and trying to figure those things out takes me out of the book. Reynolds' narration solves those problems for me, plus it's just superb.
Wh ...more
The audiobook, which is narrated by Reynolds, was especially good. I often have trouble with books written in verse because I read them in my own voice, and that sh*t is NOT beautiful to listen to (sorry to everyone who watches my channel...). I'll also get hung up on which words to emphasize, the proper cadence of phrases, and trying to figure those things out takes me out of the book. Reynolds' narration solves those problems for me, plus it's just superb.
Wh ...more
This was pure brilliance. I was sucked in and finished before I knew it.
Mar 18, 2018
Colleen Fauchelle
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2018-books
I started this book 3 days ago. Wow this is a good story and it is written in verse which is a very efective way of telling it.
Its about this boy who's brother is shot dead, his mother is heartbroken and he is out for revenge.
He grabs the gun.
Then he gets into the elevator to go down.
He is following the rules that have been handed down from generation to generation, but what if the rules are wrong and all your left with is more heartache.
As he goes down at each floor someone gets on that he has ...more
Its about this boy who's brother is shot dead, his mother is heartbroken and he is out for revenge.
He grabs the gun.
Then he gets into the elevator to go down.
He is following the rules that have been handed down from generation to generation, but what if the rules are wrong and all your left with is more heartache.
As he goes down at each floor someone gets on that he has ...more
“you coming?” I GOT CHILLS OH MY GOD.......... wowowowowowoowowow
I personally just find with every book in verse I read that it isn't a style that works well for me no matter how much I try it. I chose to listen to the audiobook, which the author himself reads and hearing him read it the way he intended was amazing. However, I was still left pondering this style because it left me a bit confused by the ending. Maybe I was reading too much into things, looking for structure that verse doesn't abide by, or maybe the audio format caused me to miss something.
None ...more
None ...more
...I...I don't know if I can actually explain how absolutely amazing this book is. Just buy, read it.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| book review - February | 4 | 4 | Feb 19, 2019 05:25PM | |
| The Rules | 2 | 17 | Jan 08, 2019 07:24PM | |
| Mentor Texts: Mentor Texts | 1 | 6 | Dec 20, 2018 05:20PM | |
| Discussion 11/16 | 1 | 6 | Nov 16, 2018 06:37AM | |
| Goodreads Choice ...: Long Way Down - August 2018 | 1 | 43 | Jul 31, 2018 06:25PM |
After earning a BA in English from The University of Maryland, College Park, he moved to Brooklyn, New York, where you can often find him walking the four blocks from the train to his apartment talking to himself. Well, not really talking to himself, but just repeating character names and plot lines he thought of on the train, over and over again, because he’s afraid he’ll forget it all before he
...more
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“ANOTHER THING ABOUT THE RULES
They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken
to follow.”
—
30 likes
They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken
to follow.”
“but if blood inside you is on the inside of someone else,
you never want to see it on the outside of them"
-Will”
—
19 likes
More quotes…
you never want to see it on the outside of them"
-Will”
