This story was going to begin like all the best stories. With a school bus falling from the sky. But no one saw it happen. They were all too busy— 

Talking about boogers. 
Stealing pocket change. 
Skateboarding. 
Wiping out. 
Braving up. 
Executing complicated handshakes. 
Planning an escape. 
Making jokes. 
Lotioning up. 
Finding comfort. 
But mostly, too busy walking home. 

Jason Reynolds conjures ten tales (one per block) about what happens after the dismissal bell rings, and brilliantly weaves them into one wickedly funny, piercingly poignant look at the detours we face on the walk home, and in life.

If you have 3-4 hours, need a hilarious, side-splitting, heart wrenching, real life story that will keep you non stop entertained… this is it! This YA story is exquisitely and uniquely told by a cast of characters you will learn to love more and more with each turn of the page!
Each chapter is a “what happens on the walk home from school” adventure. It’s 10 blocks of friends, outrageous stories, hilarious shenanigans, heart breaking journies, unbreakable friendships, unwanted travesties, and page after page of plot twists.

I loved this story! I have read other stories by Jason Reynolds and I am hooked! He is proof that when you write from the heart, you will draw others into your story. Highly recommended read for mature middle grade readers, young adult readers, teachers, parents, and any adult not fitting the aforementioned categories!

The first name bits:
What Jason knows is that there are a lot — A LOT — of people, young, old, and in-between, who hate reading. He knows that many of these book haters are boys. He knows that many of these book-hating boys, don’t actually hate books, they hate boredom. If you are reading this, and you happen to be one of these boys, first of all, you’re reading this Jason’s master plan is already working (muahahahahahaha) and second of all, know that Jason totally feels you. He REALLY does. Because even though he’s a writer, he hates reading boring books too. 

So here’s what he plans to do: NOT WRITE BORING BOOKS. 

That’s it, and that’s all. 

Now, for the last name bits:
Jason Reynolds is a New York Times bestselling author and the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. He is a Newbery Award Honoree, a Printz Award Honoree, National Book Award Honoree, a Kirkus Award winner, a two time Walter Dean Myers Award winner, an NAACP Image Award Winner, and the recipient of multiple Coretta Scott King honors. Reynolds was named the American Booksellers Association’s 2017 and 2018 spokesperson for Indies First, and served as the national spokesperson for the 2018 celebration of School Library Month in April 2018, sponsored by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL). His collaboration with Ibram X. Kendi, Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, is forthcoming in 2020. Jason’s many works of fiction include When I Was the Greatest, Boy in the Black Suit, All American Boys (cowritten with Brendan Kiely), As Brave As You, For Every One, Miles Morales: Spider Man, the Track series (Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu), Long Way Down, which received both a Newbery Honor and a Printz Honor, and Look Both Ways, which was a National Book Award Finalist and was named one of the best books of 2019 by NPR, The New York Times, School Library Journal, and more. Jason has appeared on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and CBS This Morning. He is on faculty at Lesley University, for the Writing for Young People MFA Program and lives in Washington, DC. You can find his ramblings at JasonWritesBooks.com.