Reviews with content warning for Blood - Long Way Down

Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

52 reviews

brookeisbusyreading's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

[3.5]

I struggled with rating this book because there are positives and almost equal negatives for me.

Positives:
- That ending was PERFECT!
- With the poetry style, Reynolds still did a good job with character development.
- The worldbuilding was decent.

Negatives:
- I have a HUGE pet peeve with broken grammar and it made me cringe so hard I nearly imploded every time. (I’m a grammar nerd, what can I say?)
- There were some back and forth with the backstory/plot that gave me a bit of whiplash.
- The language shifted between that broken grammar to more propar grammar inconsistently. I know it’s a stylistic choice but it didn’t have as much of an impact for me.

So yeah, some things I liked about Long Way Down and some things I disliked. Still glad I gave it a shot. I’d also like to read the graphic novel too. I think my library has it too!

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mayjulyn's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad

4.0

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hazeleyeddreamer's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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lbird's review

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challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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joylovestoread's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

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randisworld's review

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was great. I love the vision and more importantly the dedication to boys across this nation whose lives have been abbreviated due to a “beef”.

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creolelitbelle's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Reread: Reading this book again causes me to think even more critically about the nuances within the writing and formatting. I love the narrative being bookended with the image of elevator doors and how text drops down on the page depending on mood and deep thought. Everyone who visits Will has a different story to tell but all connect back to the tough decision he has to make by the time he reaches the end of his long way down. A Christmas Carol with its ghostly visitations and advice must have been an inspiration for this book. Ghosts of Rules victims past, maybe.

Long Way Down made me think about what communities in areas thick with violence deal with regularly like Baton Rouge. People have to make choices how to live with and handle the violence around them, and older family and friends teach them how to do that. Will's journey down the elevator is a great example of thinking through our actions before we react. We would do well to listen to advice of those who came before us, but sometimes they're gone before we can hear their thoughts. This novel in verse can be read quickly but takes some pondering and flipping of pages back and forth to fully let the implications of characters' choices sink in.

Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it. Charles R. Swindoll

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