Jason Reynolds

As Will, fifteen, sets out to avenge his brother Shawn's fatal shooting, seven ghosts who knew Shawn board the elevator and reveal truths Will needs to know.

Jason Reynolds conjures ten tales (one per block) about what happens after the dismissal bell rings, and weaves them into one funny, poignant look at the detours we face on the walk home, and in life.

A celebration of Langston Hughes and African American authors he inspired, told through the lens of the party held at the New York Public Library's Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in 1991.

"Correr. Eso es lo único que Fantasma --cuyo nombre real es Castle Cranshaw-- ha conocido toda su vida. Pero nunca para un equipo de atletismo. Nones, lo suyo siempre ha sido el básquet. Pero cuando Fantasma, en una fanfarronada, reta a un velocista de élite a una competencia --y la gana--, el medallista olíimpico que es entrenador del equipo ve que él tiene algo: un talento natural que es una lacura."-- "Ghost, a naturally talented runner...

"All too many kids of color get 'the talk.' The talk about where to keep their hands, how to wear their clothes, how to speak, how to act around police-an honest talk, a talk about survival in a racist world. The get "the talk" because they must. But white kids don't get this talk. Instead, they're barely spoken to about race at all-and that needs to change. The Other Talk begins this much-needed conversation for white kids. In an accessible, anecdotal,...