How It Went Down -- Kekla Magoon, Hardcover

A 2015 Coretta Scott King Author Honor Book

One death. Two bullets. Seven eyewitnesses...with seven different stories.

When sixteen-year-old Tariq Johnson dies from two gunshot wounds, his community is thrown into an uproar. Tariq was black. The shooter, Jack Franklin, is white.

In the aftermath of Tariq's death, everyone has something to say, but no two accounts of the events line up. Day by day, new twists further obscure the truth.

Tariq's friends, family, and community struggle to make sense of the tragedy, and to cope with the hole left behind when a life is cut short. In their own words, they grapple for a way to say with certainty: This is how it went down.

This title has Common Core connections.

Author: Kekla Magoon
Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
Published: 10/21/2014
Pages: 326
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.00h x 5.80w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9780805098693
Age Range: 14-17

Accelerated Reader:
Reading Level: 4
Point Value: 8
Interest Level: Upper Grade
Quiz #/Name: 170202 / How It Went Down

Award: Tayshas Reading - Commended
Award: Capitol Choices: Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens - Recommended
Award: Coretta Scott King Award - Honor Book
Award: Cybils - Finalist
Award: In the Margins Book Award - Winner

Review Citation(s):
School Library Journal 08/01/2014 pg. 103
Publishers Weekly 08/25/2014
Kirkus Reviews Fall Preview 08/15/2014 pg. 78
Kirkus Reviews 09/01/2014
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 11/01/2014 pg. 166
Booklist 10/01/2014 pg. 77
Voice of Youth Advocates 10/01/2014 pg. 70 - Recommended - Better Than Most
Horn Book Magazine 11/01/2014 pg. 100
PW Children's Starred Reviews 12/01/2014 pg. 88
Kirkus Best Young-Adult Books 12/01/2014 pg. 67
BookPage 11/01/2014
Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/2015 - Superior,Well Above Average

About the Author
Kekla Magoon is the author of several books for young adults, including 37 Things I Love, the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award-winning The Rock and the River, and the Coretta Scott King Honor Book How It Went Down. She lives in Vermont.