Synopses & Reviews
Just when seventeen-year-old Matt thinks he canand#8217;t handle one more piece of terrible news, he meets a girl whoand#8217;s dealt with a lot moreand#8212;and who just might be able to clue him in on how to rise up when life keeps knocking him downand#8212;in this and#8220;vivid, satisfying, and ultimately upbeat tale of grief, redemption, and graceand#8221; (andlt;iandgt;Kirkus Reviewsandlt;/iandgt;) from the Coretta Scott King and#8211; John Steptoe Awardand#8211;winning author of andlt;iandgt;When I Was the Greatestandlt;/iandgt;.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Matt wears a black suit every day. No, not because his mom diedand#8212;although she did, and it sucks. But he wears the suit for his gig at the local funeral home, which pays way better than the Cluck Bucket, and he needs the income since his dad canand#8217;t handle the bills (or anything, really) on his own. So while Dadand#8217;s snagging bottles of whiskey, Mattand#8217;s snagging fifteen bucks an hour. Not bad. But everything else? Not good. Then Matt meets Lovey. Crazy name, and sheand#8217;s been through more crazy stuff than he can imagine. Yet Lovey never cries. Sheand#8217;s tough. Really tough. Tough in the way Matt wishes he could be. Which is maybe why heand#8217;s drawn to her, and definitely why he canand#8217;t seem to shake her. Because thereand#8217;s nothing more hopeful than finding a person who understands your lonelinessand#8212;and who can maybe even help take it away.
Review
"The realistic setting and character-driven tale keeps readers turning the pages of this winner." -andlt;Iandgt;School Library Journalandlt;/Iandgt;
Review
"A vivid, satisfying and ultimately upbeat tale of grief, redemption and grace." -andlt;Iandgt;Kirkus Reviewsandlt;/Iandgt;
Review
"Matt is a wonderfully sympathetic, multidimensional character whose voice is a perfect match for the material and whose relationships with Love and Mr. Rayand#8212;also a fascinating characterand#8212;are beautifully realized. This quiet story is clearly a winner." -andlt;Iandgt;Booklistandlt;/Iandgt;
Review
*"Reynoldsand#8217; work here makes him a fine heir to the Walter Dean Myers tradition of loving storytelling that captures the heart and humor of multigenerational black urban experience." -andlt;Iandgt;Bulletin, andlt;/Iandgt;STARRED REVIEW
Synopsis
A 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor book.
Just when seventeen-year-old Matt thinks he can't handle one more piece of terrible news, he meets a girl who's dealt with a lot more--and who just might be able to clue him in on how to rise up when life keeps knocking him down--in this "vivid, satisfying, and ultimately upbeat tale of grief, redemption, and grace" (Kirkus Reviews) from the Coretta Scott King - John Steptoe Award-winning author of When I Was the Greatest.
Matt wears a black suit every day. No, not because his mom died--although she did, and it sucks. But he wears the suit for his gig at the local funeral home, which pays way better than the Cluck Bucket, and he needs the income since his dad can't handle the bills (or anything, really) on his own. So while Dad's snagging bottles of whiskey, Matt's snagging fifteen bucks an hour. Not bad. But everything else? Not good. Then Matt meets Lovey. Crazy name, and she's been through more crazy stuff than he can imagine. Yet Lovey never cries. She's tough. Really tough. Tough in the way Matt wishes he could be. Which is maybe why he's drawn to her, and definitely why he can't seem to shake her. Because there's nothing more hopeful than finding a person who understands your loneliness--and who can maybe even help take it away.
About the Author
Jason Reynolds is crazy.andlt;BRandgt; About stories.andlt;BRandgt; After earning a BA in English from The University of Maryland, College Park, he moved to Brooklyn, New York, where you can often find him walking the four blocks from the train to his apartment talking to himself. Well, not really talking to himself, but just repeating character names and plot lines he thought of on the train, over and over again, because heandrsquo;s afraid heandrsquo;ll forget it all before he gets home. Jason Reynolds is the author of critically acclaimed andlt;iandgt;When I Was the Greatestandlt;/iandgt;, for which he was the recipient of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent, andlt;iandgt;Boy in the Black Suitandlt;/iandgt;, and most recently, andlt;iandgt;All American Boysandlt;/iandgt;. You can find his ramblings at JasonWritesBooks.com.