Best-selling author Jason Reynolds was in town to share his decades of experience with readers of all ages in the Gem City on Thursday. The writer of celebrated titles such as “Long Way Down” and “Ghost” was hosted by the Dayton Metro Library as part of the Executive Director’s Author Series.
The event was divided between an onstage interview facilitated by local poet Leroy Bean, a question-and-answer session, as well as a book signing on the ground floor of the library. Reynolds was welcomed onstage by the library’s social media ambassadors Shea and Mae of “The Adventurous Shea and Mae” YouTube channel.
Reynolds started by discussing his youth during a time when libraries and local schools discouraged his relationship with reading. Neither place, the author explained, made him feel welcome. But an unexpected source would prove the catalyst for a writing career that has since touched many lives across the world.
“Rap music came along and upended me in a very interesting way. A whole generation, especially black and brown folks, had their lives changed because all of a sudden there was music that seemed to be speaking to them and for them. It was complicated but so were our lives. That music was kind of my salvation,” said Reynolds.
While he had no interest in rapping, a young Reynolds became fascinated with words and rhyming. Through music he developed an appreciation for poetry that often led him to spend hours reading lyrics in the liner notes packaged with cassette tapes.
“I just wanted to read the lyrics,” said Reynolds. “It was like magic to me and I wanted to understand how to do that.”
Reynolds credited those lyrics as being his “first books.” This interest soon extended to other genres and would eventually lead him to write poetry himself.
“Fast forward and my grandmother dies, I’m experiencing my first death. Hearing your mother break for the first time changes you and I did the only thing I knew to do which was what the rappers were doing. I wrote a few lines down, my mom without my consent printed it on the funeral program, and I started to get feedback from family members saying how much they loved what I wrote,” said Reynolds. “I realized then that I had power now and so many young people what they are starving for is just a little bit of power. I knew in that moment I had power because I had language and that changed everything.”
In a career that has seen him write dozens of books, from young adult fiction to novels about superheroes, Reynolds explained that the books he writes are really for himself. They’re the types of stories he wished he had growing up.
“For me, most of these books are me going back to who I was at those ages and saying ‘this is what could have made this a little easier for you. This is what could have stopped you from being harmful to yourself and the people around you,’” Reynolds said. “These are the books that say ‘it’s ok to be whole, it’s ok Jason.’ If anybody else finds it entertaining or edifying in any kind of way that’s a plus, but for me, I wish I had these books and these stories for me. That’s why I’m writing them for us.”
The award-winning author added that one song he wished he could see in book form was Slick Rick’s “Children’s Story.” He admitted, however, that the Wu-Tang Clan’s “36 Chambers” would also be interesting to experience in book form.
“We’re talking about black men from Staten Island and Brooklyn who are rough around the edges but obsessed with kung-fu and comic books. They might slap you in the face or karate chop you and at the same time ask what you think about spiderman issue #1! Those guys represent such a huge part of our community that everybody pretends doesn’t exist. If you really want to know who black men are, a lot of us are nerds. The only problem is we weren’t allowed to tell you that,” he said.
Given his wealth of experience taking to and about the youth of America, it came as no surprise that many members of the audience wanted his take on the next generation. Reynolds advised adults to be humble and model the behavior they want children to show. Classrooms and libraries today have improved a lot and are becoming better spaces for the youth, he added.
“The library feels like a community center, and it should. What better place to convene than amongst the information right? I think that this is the greatest fantasy land that we have, this is the incubator of imagination. The cabinet of our curiosities, why wouldn’t we want to be here? But in order to do so we have to meet them where they are,” Reynolds said. “So many teachers are using contemporary work and using things sort of left-of-center. Hopefully we’ll reap the benefits of that when our young people are older.”
Regarding how children can break generational curses, Reynolds had strong words about the need for the adults of today to do it for them. Children, he explained, should not be expected to have the things they were not given.
“If we do what we’re supposed to do the curses won’t be there,” he said.
In discussing his writing, Reynolds delved into the importance of developing real characters to make stories that were authentic and engaging. Characters, he explained, should have fear and joy just like in real life.
“Once I have that character, that character will tell me the story. That character will tell me what we’re about to experience together and then we go on that adventure. I don’t plan, I don’t outline. I figure if it’s an adventure for me, it’ll be an adventure for you. But it always starts with a person,” said Reynolds.
After a 30-minute question and answer session, readers got a chance to meet the author face-to-face while having their books signed. The impressive line included teachers, schoolchildren, local poets, and many more.
Ismael David Mujahid, Executive Editor
(Featured Image: Jason Reynolds was in Dayton for the first time in his career. The author shared anecdotes from his eventful life, offered writing advice, and spoke about important social issues. Photo Credit: Ismael David Mujahid)