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What Members Thought
A quiet and beautiful story about a young man coming to terms with his mother's death and its aftermath. Jason Reynolds is a remarkable talent.
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Another in the long line of excellent books this year! This one is close to 4 1/2 stars, too. Absolutely love Matt, the main character, and his love interest (Love). I like this even better than the author's debut last year, which I also loved. I'm really starting to have a hard time believing the quality of the teen novels that I'm reading this year, and starting to really feel sorry for anybody on awards committees having to choose winners this year, with this embarrassment of riches! Not yet
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Jason Reynolds brings us an amazing young man who isn't in a gang and is just trying to get by. After losing his mother, Matt struggles with getting back to his old routines and learns to grow into new ones. This story of a Brooklyn boy who isn't hard and gritty but sensitive and thoughtful is a voice YA needs and my students need to hear.
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Dec 24, 2014
Barbara
rated it
really liked it
Shelves:
basketball,
jobs,
character-building,
nature,
compassion,
conflict,
literacy,
homelessness,
urban-life,
facing-fears
Like so many other boys his age, seventeen-year-old Matt Miller is dealing with the unexpected death of his mother. As the story unfolds, it's clear that she was the glue that held the family together since Matt's father turns to drink as part of his mourning process, and Matt is floundering. Matt is basically a good kid. He keeps up with his homework, avoids the gangs in his Brooklyn neighborhood, and takes a job at the local funeral home. While struggling with the emptiness left by his mother'
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Jason Reynolds is so good at teen boy characters, and seems to consistently turn simple, quiet stories into something more meaningful. This book stays with a simple premise: Matthew loses his mother and watches his father fall apart, and finds solace in crashing funerals until he meets a girl who apparently has the strength he can't find. There is no hyperbole or action in this story, and the twist at the end serves to get readers thinking rather than turning pages. I should have rated this four
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At Reading Rants: http://www.readingrants.org/2015/07/2...
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Nov 15, 2014
Dan
marked it as to-read
Jan 07, 2015
Liz
marked it as to-read
Feb 01, 2015
Lea
marked it as books-in-the-pile
Shelves:
2016-read-these-books,
2015-read-winter-break
Feb 16, 2015
Danielle
marked it as to-read
Mar 13, 2015
Kirsten Barber
marked it as to-read-soon
Apr 27, 2015
Julie
marked it as to-read
Aug 13, 2015
Debrarian
marked it as to-read
Aug 13, 2015
Rebecca
marked it as to-read
Aug 20, 2015
Kris Springer
marked it as to-read
Aug 26, 2015
Dawn
marked it as to-read
Sep 08, 2015
Kristy
marked it as to-read
