Long Way Down
by Jason Reynolds
18 jurisdictions · Banned 2019-2025 · Published
Long Way Down is Jason Reynolds's 2017 novel in verse following a Black teenager riding an elevator with the ghosts of his neighborhood's gun violence victims, banned or restricted in 18+ U.S. jurisdictions.
Why it was banned
The book has been challenged for its depictions of gun violence and language. Reynolds has been one of the most public voices against book bans, serving as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature from 2020 to 2022 and using the platform extensively to defend banned books.
Cited reasons
- depictions of gun violence
- language
- racial content
Primary states
Texas, Florida, Tennessee
Why it matters
Long Way Down is one of the most-celebrated young adult novels of its decade. Reynolds tells the entire story across the sixty seconds of an elevator ride. The book won the Coretta Scott King Author Honor, the Newbery Honor, and the Printz Honor. Reynolds is one of the most-banned Black authors currently writing, alongside his co-author Ibram X. Kendi on Stamped.
Themes
- gun violence
- verse novel
- young adult
- urban Black life
Awards
- Coretta Scott King Author Honor
- Newbery Honor
- Michael L. Printz Honor
Where to buy
The Ledger recommends Black-owned booksellers. Each stocks this title or can order it.
- MahoganyBooksNational Harbor, Maryland · Founded
Independent bookstore specializing in books written for, by, and about people of the African diaspora.
- Marcus BooksOakland, California · Founded
The oldest independent Black-owned bookstore in the United States, named for political activist Marcus Garvey.
- Semicolon Bookstore and GalleryChicago, Illinois · Founded
Chicago's only Black woman-owned independent bookstore, with a mission to raise literacy rates among Chicago Public School students.
- Harriett's BookshopPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania · Founded
Named for Harriet Tubman, focusing on women authors, artists, and activists.
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Related banned books
Books in the catalog that share themes with this one.
Documented by The Ledger. A record of what Black America built and what was taken.
Book cover via Open Library. Editorial use under fair use.