Hello everyone!
I am back with another review, For Every One by Jason Reynolds. Thanks so much to Simon and Schuster Canada for sending me an ARC of this book for an honest review, as always, all opinions are my own.
This will be a bit of a shorter review because I don't have a ton to say about this book. It is told in a sort of hybrid between Reynolds's usual verse and prose - a lyrical letter, if you will. In it, Reynolds is addressing the reader, or the dreamer, as he calls us. He explains in an uplifting and honest way that dreams are worth having even if they take longer to accomplish or are a lot of work or you just face a lot of obstacles. He says many times throughout that he is by no means an expert; he is still working towards his dreams, but he is just giving a bit of hope and a bit of guidance for those struggling.
The book was a super quick read, I think the 100 pages took me about 10 minutes? But you can definitely sit and really savour the writing for longer, returning to important or meaningful passages later. There's not a lot of words on each page and since this was used as a speech a few times, I would imagine that it isn't meant to take a long time to read, but it is short and impactful.
While I think the message behind this piece was really important, I think Reynolds could have dug a little deeper - it seemed like there was a bit more that could have been explored in some parts. And, like the title suggests, this book really is for everyone. High school grads, new parents, retirees, a kid having a rough time, a young adult looking for direction, because of the general, all-encompassing nature of this book and its writing style, anyone can read it.
Overall, a quick inspirational read.