LONG WAY DOWN by Jason Reynolds

LONG WAY DOWN by Jason Reynolds

“ANOTHER THING ABOUT THE RULES

They weren't meant to be broken.
They were meant for the broken

to follow.”

Wow. I’m speechless. I’ve always been moved by verse and the way that, when done right, it can move mountains and fill valleys with meaning. The ending of this novel had me in tears, broken down and destroyed and filled with so much empathy for a boy I do not know, in circumstances I have never been in.

Here is my subjective praise of this book: though I am not Will (our main character), and it would be foolish of me to pretend I’ve ever experienced the life he has lived, I’ve felt those closest to me burn with the feeling of revenge. And not until reading this book, read by Jason Reynolds himself, have I felt an overpowering sense of understanding.

In this novel, Reynolds honors pain. That, more than any other emotion, pain has the power to slow time, to suspend disbelief. To make a one minute elevator ride fill the span of 300 pages.

Here is my objective praise of this book: the fact that Reynolds uses verse, a device that, in appearance, is confined and limiting, to tell the story of a boy traveling down an elevator, an equally confined and limiting space, is genius.

I could give you a synopsis or tell you more about the plot, but I think this is one best read blind (mindful of the triggers below)

And oof, the ending is powerful in its delivery.

A novel told in verse is not for everyone; a lot is told off the page, in the inflection of Reynolds’ voice, and in the white spaces between the words. I recommend sitting with this one for a bit, maybe reading it twice, and discussing with others. High praise to my friend, Alex, who knew I would feel this one deeply. You were right!

CW: gun violence, trauma, loss, cycle of violence