Not all award-winning books deserve their accolades, but in this case, Long Way Down deserves its long list of awards.  This contemporary young adult novel is written in verse–which is perfect.  There is a superb use of font, white space, and verse; it is impossible to imagine this book in any other way, as it multiplies the impact of the story.

This poignant novel gives a honest voice and compelling insight to the vicious cycle of violence that so many youth find themselves caught in.  It is a chance for young adult readers not familiar with that world to snatch a glimpse that it is never simple nor easy to break that cycle. 

In some ways, this novel has a Dicken’s Christmas Carol-feeling, as Will, the protagonist, is literally forced to face the ghosts from his past and make a choice about his future.  Spare, penetrating, and brilliant!

Content Analysis:

Profanity/Language:  9 mild obscenities; 9 scatological words; 4 anatomical terms; 1 F-word derivative.

Violence/Gore:  Descriptive passage about the agony of having a tooth pulled out (analogy); character recalls a friend being shot when she was eight, descriptive scene; report relative was shot and killed; report a parent was shot in the head; character describes shooting his brother’s murderer; report that someone shot someone else; character shows “hole” in chest where he was shot; character is wearing the bloody shirt he was shot in; sibling is shot/murdered.

Sex/Nudity:  Mother hopes her son won’t get girlfriend pregnant; kissing; brothers talk about girls/girlfriends (in general); boy notices a girl and flirts.

Mature Subject Matter:

Death, murder, drug-dealing, guns, racial issues, paranormal.

Alcohol / Drug Use:

Parents drink (to excess); characters sell drugs/reference to drug dealing; characters smoke; reference to “sharing a bottle of something cheap”.