Newbery Honor Author Jason Reynolds

Click here to watch the 2018 ALA Youth Media Awards.

I asked Erin Entrada Kelly, Derrick Barnes, Jason Reynolds, and Renée Watson to answer two questions and to finish two sentence starters. 

Erin's Responses

Renée's Responses 

Derrick's Responses

Congratulations, Jason! Everyone loves hearing about THE CALL. What ran through your head when the phone rang? 

Jason Reynolds: Well...nothing really went through my mind besides excitement. It's always a weird thing. The phone buzzes, and my stomach leaps into my throat. There's also this weird calm. This weight lifted. I don't know, it's hard to explain. And when I answered and found out it was the Newbery Committee and that they were awarding Long Way Down, I secretly thought they were making a mistake but didn't want to say anything just in case they didn't know what they were talking about. 

What does the Newbery mean to me? 

Jason Reynolds: It just means that I have so much more work to do. I'm grateful for it. To be given one of the highest honors in our industry is incredible. But it only makes me want to work harder to make something better for our children. 

Please finish these sentence starters: 

Reading is a conduit to wholeness. 

School Libraries are physical databases of potential. 

Borrow Long Way Down from your school or public library. Whenever possible, please support independent bookshops.