Scan barcode
A review by creolelitbelle
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
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
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, and Murder