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Long Way Down (book)

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Long Way Down
AuthorJason Reynolds
PublisherSimon and Schuster
Publication date
October 24, 2017
Pages306
AwardsPrintz Honor Book, Coretta Scott King author award, Newbery Honor
ISBN978-1-48143-825-4
OCLC972216719

Long Way Down is a young adult novel in verse by Jason Reynolds, published October 24, 2017, by Atheneum Books. The book was longlisted for the National Book Award[1] and was named a Printz Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Honor Book, and Newbery Medal Honor Book,[2] alongside other awards and positive reviews.

A graphic novel edition of the book, illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff, was published October 13, 2020.

Background

[edit]

Reynolds held the idea for Long Way Down for years before finally writing it. In 2003 when Reynolds was 19, he learned that a friend had been murdered.[3] Speaking of the moment, he said he and his friends felt "an anger, a pain, like a cancer metastasizing by the second, spreading around us and through us. We knew his death had changed us chemically, and that we could do, perhaps, what we never knew we could do before. Kill."[3] Reynolds continued,

Long Way Down is meant to help us all recognize the weight of it. Not just the weight of gun violence, but the weight of anger bearing down on fragile backs. The weight of slow-burning psychosis. The weight of community codes, family dynamic, tradition. The weight of The Rules. The weight of guaranteed cold cases. The weight of fear, and the feeling of insignificance. The weight of dehumanization, of being stripped of personhood because of instinctual moments and feelings, unfettered. The weight of so many children—more specifically, so many black and brown children—jumping on this soiled American mattress, poverty, illiteracy, and prejudice serving as the coils.[3]

Plot

[edit]

William Holloman is ready to exact vengeance on the person who murdered his older brother, Shawn. As Will rides the elevator down from his eighth-floor apartment, a new person, who is dead, gets on on each floor and tells a story about their lives, all connected to three rules of the neighborhood:[4]

  1. Don't cry.
  2. Don't snitch.
  3. Get revenge.

Most of the ghosts' stories revolve around that third rule, wherein one person died because they killed someone who killed someone connected to their family, creating a continuous cycle of death.

The full story takes place over the course of a minute.

Reception

[edit]

Long Way Down was a New York Times best seller[1][5] and Junior Library Guild selection.[6]

The book received starred reviews from Booklist,[7] Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books,[8] Horn Book,[9] Kirkus,[5] Publishers Weekly,[10] and School Library Journal,[11] as well as positive reviews from Shelf Awareness.[12]

In reviews, the book was called "astonishing,"[5] "a tour de force,"[10] "powerful,"[11] and "intense."[12]

Kirkus,[5] Publishers Weekly,[13] the New York Public Library,[14] the Chicago Public Library,[15] Entertainment Weekly,[16] Vulture,[17] Paste,[18] Buzzfeed,[19] Horn Book,[20] and School Library Journal[21] named Long Way Down one of the best young adult books of the year. The Washington Post included it in their list of "50 Notable Works of Fiction 2017."[22]

TIME added it to their "100 Best YA Books of All Time" list,[23] and Buzzfeed named it one of the best 30 young adult books of the decade.[24]

Awards and honors

[edit]
Year Award Result Ref.
2017 The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books Blue Ribbon Selection [25]
Goodreads Choice Award for Poetry Nominee [26]
Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Young Adult Literature Winner [27]
2018 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award Finalist [28]
American Library Association's Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults Selection [29][30]
Association for Library Service to Children Notable Children's Books Selection [31]
Capitol Choices for Ages Fourteen and Up Selection [32]
Cooperative Children's Book Center Choice for Fiction for Young Adults Selection [33]
Coretta Scott King Award Honor [34][35]
Cybils Award for Poetry Winner [36]
Indies Choice Book Award for Young Adult Honor [37]
International Literacy Association's Young Adults' Choices Selection [38]
Newbery Medal Honor [34][5][35]
Michael L. Printz Award Honor [34][35]
Odyssey Award Honor [34][35]
Walter Dean Myers Award Winner [2]
Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Fiction Winner [39]
NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Youth/Teens Shortlist [40]
National Book Award for Young People's Literature Longlist [1]
Michigan Library Association's Thumbs Up! Award Top 10 [41]
YALSA's Best Fiction for Young Adults Top 10 [42]
YALSA's Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers Top 10 [43]
YALSA's Teens' Top Ten Top 10 [44]
2019 Carnegie Medal Nominee [45]
Oklahoma Library Association's Sequoyah Book Award for High School Nominee [46]
Rhode Island Teen Book Award Honor [47]
2019-2020 South Carolina Association of School Librarians' Young Adult Book Award Nominee [48]
2020 Evergreen Teen Book Award for Middle School Nominee [49]
2021 Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award Nominee [50][51]

Graphic novel

[edit]

A graphic novel edition of the book, illustrated by Danica Novgorodoff, was published October 13, 2020, by Atheneum.[52] This graphic novel was the 2022 winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal.[53]

Writing for Horn Book, Patrick Gall applauded the imagery, noting that

artful decisions offer readers insight into Will’s emotional state at any given moment. The layered, fragmented layouts found across many spreads have potent impact, along with stylistic touches such as Polaroid photos, video screens, and storyboards seamlessly substituted for panels. Scenes of violence are starkly portrayed, including a double-page image of Shawn’s dead body; however, the complex and unjust reality of Will’s position remains front and center, in stark focus.[54]

In 2021, the American Library Association selected Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel as one of their Great Graphic Novels for Teens.[55]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Long Way Down - National Book Foundation". National Book Foundation. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Reynolds, Weatherford Named Winners of 2018 Walter Dean Myers Award". School Library Journal. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c "Jason Reynolds's Printz Honor Acceptance Speech" (PDF).
  4. ^ Reynolds, Jason (October 24, 2017). Long Way Down. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4814-3827-8.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Long Way Down". Kirkus Reviews. July 2, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  6. ^ "Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds". Junior Library Guild. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  7. ^ Smith, Julia (July 2017). Long Way Down, by Jason Reynolds. Retrieved November 28, 2018 – via Booklist Online.
  8. ^ Bush, Elizabeth (2017). "Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (review)". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. 71 (2): 90. doi:10.1353/bcc.2017.0735. ISSN 1558-6766. S2CID 201735854 – via Project MUSE.
  9. ^ Sutton, Roger (October 5, 2017). "Review of Long Way Down". The Horn Book. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  10. ^ a b "Children's Book Review: Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds. Atheneum/Dlouhy, $17.99 (320p) ISBN 978-1-4814-3825-4". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  11. ^ a b Anderson, Kristen. "Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds | SLJ Review". School Library Journal. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  12. ^ a b Gaetano, Siân (October 24, 2017). "Long Way Down". Shelf Awareness. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  13. ^ "Best Books 2017 Publishers Weekly". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  14. ^ Glazer, Gwen (November 20, 2017). "Introducing the Best Books for Teens 2017". New York Public Library. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  15. ^ ChiPubLib_Teens. "Best Teen Fiction of 2017". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  16. ^ Canfield, David (December 12, 2017). "The 10 best YA books of 2017". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  17. ^ Kreizman, Maris (December 19, 2017). "The 10 Best YA Books of 2017". Vulture. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  18. ^ Smith, Eric (December 6, 2017). "The 30 Best Young Adult Books of 2017". Paste Magazine. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  19. ^ Penn, Farrah; Skelley, Jemima (December 10, 2017). "28 Of The Best YA Books Released In 2017 That You'll Want To Read Immediately". BuzzFeed. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  20. ^ "Horn Book Fanfare 2017". The Horn Book. December 7, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  21. ^ GreenwichFiction. "School Library Journal's Best Young Adult Books 2017". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  22. ^ Massoni, Simone. "50 notable works of fiction in 2017". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  23. ^ "The 100 Best YA Books of All Time". Time. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  24. ^ Penn, Farrah; Osifo, Ehis; Watson, Shyla; Rebolini, Arianna; Parker, Lara (December 20, 2019). "The 30 Best YA Books Of The Decade". BuzzFeed. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  25. ^ Stevenson, Deborah. "2017 Blue Ribbons". Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  26. ^ "Long Way Down". Goodreads. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  27. ^ "Los Angeles Times Book Prizes 2017". Book Reporter. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  28. ^ Cassie (August 1, 2018). "2018 Amelia Elizabeth Walden Book Award Winner & Finalists Announced". Teachers Who Read. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  29. ^ "Long Way Down | Awards & Grants". American Library Association. August 1, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  30. ^ "Amazing Audiobooks for Young Adults". American Library Association. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  31. ^ "2018 Notable Children's Books". Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). December 14, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  32. ^ "Capitol Choices" (PDF). Capitol Choices. 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  33. ^ Horning, Kathleen T.; Lindgren, Merri V.; Schliesman, Megan; McKnight Townsend, Emily; Tyner, Madeline (2018). "Fiction for Young Adults". CCBC Choices 2018 (PDF). Madison, Wisconsin: Cooperative Children’s Book Center. p. 95.
  34. ^ a b c d Roback, Diane (February 18, 2017). "Kelly, Cordell, LaCour Win Newbery, Caldecott, Printz". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  35. ^ a b c d Morales, Macey (February 19, 2018). "American Library Association announces 2018 youth media award winners". American Library Association. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  36. ^ "2018 Cybils Finalists". Children's and Young Adult Bloggers' Literary Awards. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  37. ^ Jarrard, Sydney (May 9, 2018). "2018 Indies Choice and E.B. White Read-Aloud Award Winners Announced". American Booksellers Association. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  38. ^ Young Adults' Choices 2018 (PDF). International Literacy Association. 2018. p. 3.
  39. ^ "Category List – Best Young Adult". Edgars Database. Mystery Writers of America. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  40. ^ T. H. R. staff (November 20, 2017). "NAACP Image Awards: 'Marshall,' 'Get Out,' 'Girls Trip' Dominate Film Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  41. ^ "2018 Thumbs Up! Award". Michigan Library Association. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  42. ^ "2018 Top Ten Best Fiction". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). February 14, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  43. ^ "2018 Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). January 31, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  44. ^ "2018 Teens' Top Ten". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). March 14, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  45. ^ "Nominations published for the CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Medals 2019". The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Children's Book Awards. November 5, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  46. ^ "2019 High School Sequoyah Masterlist". Oklahoma Library Association. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  47. ^ SBarta (March 25, 2019). "Announcing the 2019 RITBA Winner and the 2020 List!". Rhode Island Teen Book Award. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  48. ^ "Young Adult Book Award Nominees and Materials". SCASL. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  49. ^ MercerIslandLibraryTeen. "2020 Evergreen Middle School Book Award Nominees - ebooks". King County Library System. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  50. ^ "Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award Cumulative List 1988-2022" (PDF). Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award. April 6, 2021. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  51. ^ ChiPubLib_Kids. "Rebecca Caudill Award 2021 Nominees". Chicago Public Library. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  52. ^ Reynolds, Jason (2020). Long way down : the graphic novel. Danica Novgorodoff (Illus.) (First ed.). New York: Atheneum Books. ISBN 978-1-5344-4495-9. OCLC 1139764258.
  53. ^ "Balen, Novgorodoff win Carnegie, Greenaway medals". Books+Publishing. Retrieved June 20, 2022.
  54. ^ "Long Way Down (graphic novel) by Jason Reynolds". Junior Library Guild. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
  55. ^ "2021 Great Graphic Novels for Teens". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). January 5, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2022.
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