Objectively good, but not my cup of tea. I'm just not a poetry person.

There was a shooting. In an area where they are not uncommon. This book explores the inner monologue of a character very close to the shooting in the immediate aftermath of that event and, in doing so, does an excellent job of exploring the culture of the neighbourhood.

I don't want to say a lot more than that because I don't want to spoil the story. It was worth reading, and I do recommend it to anyone who enjoys verse.

This book is a work of art. Read it, savor it, let it take you to another world- all in the space of an elevator ride. Jason Reynolds is a special author. I would say the voice of a generation. Listen to him.

This book was so moving! It is very eye opening and the prose is beautiful. Brings to mind the pressing current issues while also telling a compelling story in heart wrenching verse.

Told in verse so it’s a quick read but it’s told in verse so each word is full. I didn’t want to read it too quickly for fear of missing the weight of each word/verse. Very well told and readable.

Wow - this powerful, quick read just blew me away. Short conversations in verse form as 15YO Will descends an elevator on a dangerous errand force him to confront hard truths about his family and the cycle of gun violence. This is my first book by Reynolds, and now I'm eager to check out his others, especially Ghost, which was a National Book Award finalist.

Long Way Down is yet another striking example of how some of the best, most creative novels are labelled for young adults and overlooked by many adult readers. Don't let that fool you! I'm 62. :)

Writing: 10/10
Characters: 10/10
Plot: 10/10
I probably read this verse novel in an hour, yet it had me thinking about it long afterward. It went through some intense material very quickly, and I would need to read it several times over to fully absorb everything. The poetic style pulled me through the text effortlessly, and I imagine this would be a very popular read for reluctant readers.

Told in the time span of one minute, Long Way Down is a thought provoking novel (in verse) about a teenage boy who is seeking revenge on the man who killed his brother. On his way, he encounters five people that cause him to question 'The Rules' he's lived his life by. Reynolds' ability to hold the readers attention for 300 pages worth of one minute verse is impeccable. I'm eager to read more from this astounding author.

I must say, I thought the reviews were going to be great for this book, so the lack of reviews, and very poor ratings shock me(currently 1 star right now). To call this book terrible would be misleading; I could easily see people enjoying this book. However, it was not for me, nor is it for the vast majority of readers. Being Cafe Book nominated, I had high hopes coming in, but it was a big disappointment. There are a lot of things in this book that I really dislike, so I will make a checklist of things that I personally disliked. If you dislike 2 or more, I don't think you will enjoy this book.
1) Absolutely terrible grammar, to the extent I can't believe this was written by anyone older than 5.
2) Very anti-police.
3) Plot jumps all over the place, introduces characters and acts like we've known them forever.
4) About 10 words per page(great if you are logging pages though! It's about a 20 page book in about 300 pages!)
5) Characters go totally out of character.
6) Very depressing.
7) A cliff-hanger ending without all the good parts of cliff-hanger endings.
I don't know about you, but I checked all 7 boxes. Overall, I give this book a 4/10, and a "Would Strongly Discourage From Reading" review.

Heartbreaking in part because of its simplicity. Will's brother has been killed. Will KNOWS who did it and his world is bound by rules, one of which is revenge. As Will rides down in the elevator on his way to take revenge, a new person gets on at every floor. Will, over and over is shown the chain that "the rules" have tied him to.

Reynolds has trimmed all excess from the core problem of lives based on "the rules" without sacrificing character or plot. His quick lines are like a punch to the gut, and Reynolds doesn't leave us, or Will, with easy answers or aphorisms.

This book is absolutely astonishing. I love the fun writing style, although it is annoying at times. Besides that, it is a great novel with a very harsh meaning behind it. I find the idea of the main character, Will, in an elevator the whole time quite creative because taking an elevator only takes a few seconds and somehow the author, Jason Reynolds, made an entire book out of the situation.