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Oxygen Mask: A Graphic Novel: by Jason Reynolds ill. Jason Griffin

July 29, 2022 By achuka Leave a Comment

ACHUKA Book of the Day 29 Jul 2022
Times Children’s Book of the Week 18 Jun 2022

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Amazon
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“The art is sometimes spare and monochrome before shifting to a bright and striking palette as Griffin deploys aesthetics that enliven the rich flow and rhythm of Reynolds’ words. The two skillfully go back and forth like rap duos of old, each with a distinct voice that enriches the other. The result is an effective critique of the ways we’ve failed as a society to care for one another. By “Breath Three,” however, a complicated optimism shines through for a family that perseveres through closeness and connection despite what is broadcast from their TV. While grounded in 2020, many of the issues touched on explicitly are very much not over and not even new, making this remarkable work both timely and timeless. Artful, cathartic, and most needed.” KIRKUS
“A strength unique to visual storytelling is its ability to enrich and unpack the text, building on minor variations in observed details. Through art and words, “Ain’t Burned All the Bright” looks at how we measure time — the book’s stretched-out sentence echoes the reality of waiting indefinitely for justice, for progress, for a fulfillment of hollow promises. Insisting that possibility survives, even as every possibility now carries an asterisk.” Washington Post
“Destined to become a classic.” The Times

Published as Ain’t Burned All The Bright in the U.S.

Intimately set within the walls of a family home, this book is an incredible artefact of the historic year we have all lived through. We travel from the depths of despair but not without hope; the mundane details contained within four walls becomes our sanctuary.

This is a gift in commemoration of a time and place, of a world wide pandemic, of loss and of the murder of George Floyd. It is a reminder of how, in uncertain times, we can cling to the simple things for respite, for hope. A reminder of how comforting books and artworks are in times of extreme stress.

There is a fascinating dialogue between author and artist at the end of the book in which we learn that the two of them were originally collaborating “on a whole different book idea”. The title for the UK edition is taken directly from the conversation.

The friendship between the two Jasons goes way back. You can follow them both on Instagram:

 

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Filed Under: BookOfTheDay, Illustrated, YA Tagged With: graphic, graphic novel

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds ill. Akhran Girmay

March 11, 2022 By achuka Leave a Comment

ACHUKA Book of the Week 11 Mar 2022
Times Children’s Book of the Week 26 Feb 2022

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Amazon
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“A teen coming of age tale, this will particularly speak to boys juggling toxic masculinity and peer pressure and finding their place in the world. As with his stories, Reynolds’ conversational style and ability to create fully realised characters means that you’re invested with Ali, Jazz, Noodles and Needles from the start in this highly readable novel.” BookTrust

A lot of the stuff that gives my neighbourhood a bad name, I don’t really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing.

Nah, not his thing. Ali’s got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there’s a dude looking for trouble – and, somehow, it’s always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy’s gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it’s all small potatoes; it’s not like anyone’s getting hurt.

And then there’s Needles. Needles is Noodles’s brother. He’s got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It’s cool, though: everyone on their street knows he doesn’t mean anything by it. Yeah, it’s cool… until Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to be… somewhere they never should’ve been – where the people aren’t so friendly, and even less forgiving.

Follow the illustrator on Instagram:

 

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Follow Jason Reynolds on Instagram:

 

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Filed Under: BookOfTheDay, YA

Stuntboy, In The Meantime by Jason Reynolds ill. Raul the Third & Elaine Bay

November 4, 2021 By achuka Leave a Comment

ACHUKA Book of the Day 4 Nov 2021
Times Children’s Book of the Week 6 Nov 2021

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“Superlative, action-packed art and cheeky narration combine to tell a story of emotional intelligence on a superheroic scale while remaining consistently funny and undeniably thoughtful.” KIRKUS
“From vibrant, comic book–style art with ample color by Elaine Bay to running gags and commercial breaks that balance serious moments, there’s plenty to enjoy about this engaging, high-energy collaboration.” Publishers Weekly
“Fast-paced, hilarious, thought-provoking and dramatically visual, Stuntboy, in the Meantime is an absolute gem of a book from a double-act that I hope will produce much, much more.” Ben Harris

“I think this story—about the slipperiness of imagination, the shelter of true friendship and the complexity of family, is a universal one. We all want to be superheroes. We all want to save the people we love. And most times we often need the people we love to save us. I’m just so grateful, that once again, Knights Of, the most super of superheroes, are up to the task.” Jason Reynolds, speaking to The Bookseller.

Stuntboy is the newest superhero in town. Or at least in his own head. He’ll save you from baddies like Herbert Singletary The Worst and the Frets. Or at least he’ll TRY to. And maybe someone will end up saving him too…  This is the seventh Jason Reynolds title published by small, indie publisher Knights Of.

 

Meet the Illustrator:

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Filed Under: BookOfTheDay, Fiction, Illustrated

Stamped (For Kids): Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram Kendi adapted by Sonja Cherry-Paul ill. Rachelle Baker

August 6, 2021 By achuka Leave a Comment

ACHUKA Book of the Day 6 Aug 2021

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“A remixed remix of a foundational text… Cherry-Paul does an unparalleled job of presenting this complex information to younger readers, borrowing language from Reynolds’ remix (like the definitions of segregationists, assimilationists, and antiracists) and infusing it with her own interpretations, like the brilliant, powerful, haunting metaphor of rope woven throughout… Exhilarating, excellent, necessary.” KIRKUS 

Adapted from the award-winning, bestselling Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You, this book takes readers on a journey from present to past and back again. Kids will discover where racist ideas came from, identify how they impact America today, and meet those who have fought racism with antiracism. Along the way, they’ll learn how to identify and stamp out racist thoughts in their own lives.

Ibram X. Kendi’s research, Jason Reynolds’s and Sonja Cherry-Paul’s writing, and Rachelle Baker’s art come together in this vital read, enhanced with a glossary, timeline, and more.

Follow Rachelle Baker, the illustrator, on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/indoorcatgirl/

Filed Under: Blog, BookOfTheDay, Books, NonFiction Tagged With: antiracism, prejudice, racism, society

Long Way Down: The Graphic Novel by Jason Reynolds art by Danica Novgorodoff

November 19, 2020 By achuka Leave a Comment

ACHUKA Book of the Day 20 Nov 2020

The award-winning, bestselling verse novel is now a stunning graphic novel with illustrations by Danica Novgorodoff.

SHORTLISTED for the CILIP Carnegie Medal, WINNER of the UKLA
‘A masterpiece from beginning to end.’ Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give
‘A heartrending and convincing blank verse narrative.’ Sunday Times, BOOKS OF THE YEAR ‘Astonishing.’ Kirkus Reviews
‘A tour de force.’ Publishers Weekly
‘Will attract teenagers who don’t consider themselves ‘readers’.’ The Inis Reading Guide

AND THEN THERE WERE SHOTS
Everybody ran, ducked, hid, tucked themselves tight. Pressed our lips to the pavement and prayed the boom, followed by the buzz of a bullet, didn’t meet us. After Will’s brother is shot in a gang crime, he knows the next steps. Don’t cry. Don’t snitch. Get revenge. So he gets in the lift with Shawn’s gun, determined to follow The Rules. Only when the lift door opens, Buck walks in, Will’s friend who died years ago. And Dani, who was shot years before that. As more people from his past arrive, Will has to ask himself if he really knows what he’s doing. This haunting, lyrical, powerful verse novel will blow you away.

Follow the illustrator on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/novgorodoff/
Follow Jason Reynold on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jasonreynolds83/

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Bookshop
Amazon

Filed Under: BookOfTheDay, Illustrated Tagged With: graphic, graphic novel

Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds

November 26, 2019 By achuka Leave a Comment

Proving as at home with younger fiction as he is with the complex themes of his teen writing, Reynolds weaves a wonderfully nuanced series of stories around the daily ritual of the walk home from school. Never afraid to confront serious issues but always handling them with sensitivity and wit, Look Both Ways is marvellous entertainment with deceptive gravitas. 

Waterstones

 

Filed Under: Fiction

Patina by Jason Reynolds

September 2, 2019 By achuka Leave a Comment


ACHUKA Book of the Day Tue 26 Nov 2019

Second story in the RUN sequence of four, which began with Ghost.

It’s not the taking part, it’s the winning that counts for Patina! Patty, as she’s known to her friends and family, has lost a lot in her life – her dad died when she was young, her mum has lost her legs and now she has to live with her uncle and his wife. On top of that Patty has to go to the poshest school that ever existed. Now her running team has become a relay team and independent “I can do everything by myself” Patty has to work with her team mates to win.

Waterstones

Filed Under: Fiction Tagged With: running

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

March 6, 2019 By achuka Leave a Comment

Times Children’s Book of the Week, 16 Feb 2019

First title in a 4-book series: Ghost. Lu. Patina. Sunny. Four kids from wildly different backgrounds with personalities that are explosive when they clash. But they are also four kids chosen for an elite middle school running team-a team that could qualify them for the Junior Olympics if they can get their acts together. They all have a lot to lose and a lot to prove. Not only to each other, but to themselves.

Waterstones

 

Filed Under: Fiction

For Every One by Jason Reynolds

October 25, 2018 By achuka Leave a Comment

“Award-winning writer Reynolds (Long Way Down, 2017, etc.) offers a letter in the form of a long poem that acknowledges and encourages young people’s dreams and aspirations… Inspirational reading for any occasion.” KIRKUS

” A powerful and affirming book-length poem for teens.” School Library Journal

“This stylistic masterpiece speaks to the dreamer in us all, regardless of where we are on the path to success.” TeenReads

Waterstones

Filed Under: How About, Poetry/Tales, YA

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds ill. Chris Priestley

February 1, 2018 By achuka Leave a Comment

The poetry is stark, fluently using line breaks and page-turns for dramatic effect; the last of these reveals the best closing line of a novel this season. Read alone (though best aloud), the novel is a high-stakes moral thriller; it’s also a perfect if daring choice for readers’ theater. The Horn Book Magazine

Waterstones

Filed Under: Worth A Look, YA

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