2016 One Maryland One Book

The 2016 One Maryland One Book is All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

Join us from Mountain Maryland to the Ocean City shore as we read and discuss the 2016 One Maryland One Book: All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely.

Thank you for joining us September 25-28 on the 2016 One Maryland One Book Author Tour! We look forward to seeing you next year.

  • 2016 Author Tour Schedule
    Baltimore Book Festival, Baltimore’s Inner Harbor

    Sunday, September 25 @ 1:00 p.m.

    Author Tour Kick-Off at Baltimore Book Festival’s Literary Salon

    Telephone: (410) 685-0095

     

    Boonsboro, Washington County

    Monday, September 26 @ 10:00 a.m.

    Boonsboro High School, 10 Campus Ave

    Telephone: (301) 766-8022

    Co-hosts: Washington County Free Library

    Local Partners: Friends of the Washington County Free Library, Washington County Public Schools

     

    Abingdon, Harford County

    Monday, September 26 @ 7:00 p.m.

    Abingdon Library, 2510 Tollgate Road

    Telephone:  (410) 638-3990

    Co-host: Harford County Public Library

    Local Partners: Harford Community College, Harford County Department of Community Services Senior Division, Boys & Girls Clubs of Harford County

     

    Salisbury, Wicomico County

    Tuesday, September 27 @ 7:00 p.m.

    Salisbury University Academic Commons, 1101 Camden Avenue

    Telephone: (410) 543-6450

    Co-host: Salisbury University

    Local Partners: Wicomico Public Library, Eastern Shore Regional Library, Maryland Teachers of English Language Arts, Maryland Council of Social Studies, Eastern Shore Reading Council

     

    Waldorf, Charles County

    Wednesday, September 28 @ 11:00 a.m.

    St. Charles High School, 5305 Piney Church Road

    Telephone: (301) 753-2090

    Co-host: St. Charles High School

    Local Partners: Charles County Public Schools Department of English and Office of Minority Achievement, Charles County Public Library, Kiwanis Club of Charles County, Education Association of Charles County, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority—Tiara ASCEND Club

     

    Oxon Hill, Prince George’s County

    Wednesday, September 28 @ 7:00 p.m.

    Oxon Hill Branch Library, 6200 Oxon Hill Road

    Telephone: (301) 839-2400

    Co-host: Prince George’s County Memorial Library System

     

What would you do if you witnessed something you never would have believed? And how do you know you’re doing the right thing?

The powerful and relatable story of two high-schoolers brought together by injustice is this year’s One Maryland One Book pick.

Full Cover All American Boys
Winner of the 2016 Walter Dean Myers Award and 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book
  • Read the Book Summary

    In All American Boys, an unforgettable new novel from award-winning authors Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, two teens—one black, one white—grapple with the repercussions of a single violent act that leaves their school, their community, and, ultimately, the country bitterly divided by racial tension.

    A bag of chips. That’s all sixteen-year-old Rashad is looking for at the corner bodega. What he finds instead is a fist-happy cop, Paul Galluzzo, who mistakes Rashad for a shoplifter, mistakes Rashad’s pleadings that he’s stolen nothing for belligerence, mistakes Rashad’s resistance to leave the bodega as resisting arrest, mistakes Rashad’s every flinch at every punch the cop throws as further resistance and refusal to STAY STILL as ordered. But how can you stay still when someone is pounding your face into the concrete pavement?

    But there were witnesses: Quinn Collins—a varsity basketball player and Rashad’s classmate who has been raised by Paul since his own father died in Afghanistan—and a video camera. Soon the beating is all over the news and Paul is getting threatened with accusations of prejudice and racial brutality. Quinn refuses to believe that the man who has basically been his savior could possibly be guilty. But then Rashad is absent. And absent again. And again. And the basketball team—half of whom are Rashad’s best friends—start to take sides. As does the school. And the town. Simmering tensions threaten to explode as Rashad and Quinn are forced to face decisions and consequences they had never considered before.

    Written in tandem by two award-winning authors, this tour de force shares the alternating perspectives of Rashad and Quinn as the complications from that single violent moment, the type taken from the headlines, unfold and reverberate to highlight an unwelcome truth.

  • About the Authors
    Author Jason Reynolds  Jason Reynolds

    Jason Reynolds earned a BA in English from The University of Maryland, College Park, before moving to Brooklyn, New York to pursue a career in writing. He is the author of the critically acclaimed When I Was the Greatest, for which he was the recipient of the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent, the Coretta Scott King Honor Author Books Boy in the Black Suit and All American Boys (co-written with Brendan Kiely), and As Brave as You, his middle grade debut. His middle grade novel Ghost is a finalist for the 2016 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature. You can find his ramblings at JasonWritesBooks.com.

    Author Brendan Kiely  Brendan Kiely

    Brendan Kiely received his MFA from the City College of New York. He is the author, with Jason Reynolds, of the Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book All American Boys. His debut novel, The Gospel of Winter, has been published in ten languages, was selected as one of the American Library Association’s Top Ten Best Fiction for Young Adults 2015, and was a Kirkus Reviews selection for the Best of 2014. He is also the author of The Last True Love Story. Originally from the Boston area, he now lives with his wife in Greenwich Village. Find out more at BrendanKiely.com.

  • Awards and Recognition

    • 2016 Walter Dean Myers Award
    • 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book
    • Publishers Weekly, Booklist, and School Library Journal Starred Reviews

  • What the Authors Are Saying about One Maryland One Book
    All American Boys, at the core, is a book about humanity. Yes, it delves into the fear, confusion, and anger that often brews beneath the epidermis of a culture bent on using differences as a way to justify injustice. But that in and of itself, is, in fact, a human trait, one that we hope All American Boys challenges. One that we hope the readers see as an unnecessary, hurtful roadblock, to a more communicative, empathetic future. I couldn’t be more honored, more humbled, that One Maryland One Book has chosen All American Boys as this year’s selection. But more importantly, I couldn’t be more hopeful. – Jason Reynolds

    I believe books can change lives, but only when they are in the hands of powerful advocates… We wrote this book to set a fire in people’s hearts and spark the necessary conversations we all need to have about systemic racism and bias in our communities. We hoped and dreamed the book could facilitate those kinds of community conversations. Thank you One Maryland One Book for making this dream come true. We’re humbled and honored to be a part of it with you! – Brendan Kiely

  • What Others Are Saying About ``All American Boys``
    “At once timely and timeless, funny and wickedly smart, All American Boys is a beautifully written narrative about … about so many things — but most importantly – what it means to be a young man in America – across lines of race — and what it means to be a GOOD person in America — across lines of Everything.” — Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming, winner of the National Book Award

    “The scenario that Reynolds and Kiely depict has become a recurrent feature of news reports, and a book that lets readers think it through outside of the roiling emotions of a real-life event is both welcome and necessary.” Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review

    “Diverse perspectives are presented in a manner that feels organic to the narrative, further emphasizing the tension created when privilege and racism cannot be ignored. Timely and powerful, this novel promises to have an impact long after the pages stop turning. Great for fostering discussions about current events among teenage audiences. A must-have for all collections.” School Library Journal Starred Review

    “This life-changing, nation-changing book is written with fire and love and courage. Read it, weep, and then share its power with everyone you know.” — Laurie Halse Anderson, New York Times-bestselling author of “Speak”

Can’t wait to start reading? Listen to the beginning of “All American Boys”

  • “The school I am reporting on is designed as an alternative center for students who are not successful in the “regular” classrooms in our district. These students are challenged by a number of factors, including emotional problems, discipline issues, etc. This particular book was one that a number of students were able to relate to and engage with. As a consequence, students who do not normally read became active participants in both reading and discussing!”

    One Maryland One Book 2015 teacher
  • “One student in my book club who is in a wheelchair and has a lot of other persona/home issues, was the first to finish the book, and wheeled herself into the library more than once to ask me if I had finished the book because she wanted to talk about it. She was a huge contributor to the discussion.”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 teacher
  • “The book selections offer an opportunity to read a book that is informative and engaging. It enhances our view of the world and the individuals within it. We sincerely look forward to the OMOB selections and materials each year. It is a topic of excitement and discussion among students and staff. Truly and wonderfully.”

    ​One Maryland One Book teacher
  • “The discussion of the [2015 One Maryland One] book could not have been better. Everyone had a particular part of the story that touched them. One of the newcomers was an experienced rower and gave us wonderful insight into the physical and spiritual aspects of the sport. It is the first time in my ten years with this group that everyone loved the book.”

    One Maryland One Book 2015 participant
  • “This program is a gift, literally and figuratively!”

    One Maryland One Book 2015 teacher
  • “My students have been removed from their home schools. Right away, they made comments about the diction of the text, how it seemed realistic to them and they pointed out words they would have changed. We talked about word choice, slang, etc. I had 2 instances where students were excited to see me because they had events similar to the book happen to them and they needed to tell someone. They want to know how to change things. […] These kids typically failed English class or were chronic non-attenders or were removed before they came here. They are excited about reading a book! Teacher librarian win!”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 teacher
  • “[One Maryland One Book] is wonderful; enlightening, explorative, innovative, [and] educational.”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 participant
  • “One student who has been held back several years and suffers from emotional disorders spent several minutes asking One Maryland One Book [author Daniel James Brown] questions. He very patiently listened and answered each question. He then signed her book: ‘Write with your heart not your head.’ To watch this interaction was very touching.”

    One Maryland One Book 2015 teacher
  • “I distributed copies of the book and we engaged in an afterschool discussion which included students and staff. Everyone who participated was so engaged that our 45 minute planned discussion ended up stretching into an hour and a half!”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 teacher
  • “Left on my own, I would choose the same kind of books over and over again. Now, [participating in One Maryland One Book,] my reading experience is broader and richer and all the more enjoyable.”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 participant
  • “One of my students, a boy who works 35 hours a week at McDonalds, took the time to write me a letter stating the book had changed his life.”

    ​One Maryland One Book 2015 teacher
  • “For most of my 10th grade students, this was the first book they have read from cover to cover.”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 teacher
  • “The impact of this particular book was probably stronger than any other Maryland One Book due to the connections we could make with real world events and police brutality in the headlines. Many groups were reading and discussing the book at our school: Student Equity Team, Drama Club, Faculty book club, sociology and English classes. It fostered important discussions about race relations.”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 teacher
  • “[One Maryland One Book is] excellent! I come to as many of the One Maryland One Book events and will continue to do so—always pleased!”

    One Maryland One Book 2016 participant
  • “We had our best attendance, ever, for a book discussion, in the seven years I’ve been here.”

    One Maryland One Book 2015 participant
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