Revolutionary Tale on the Hate We Give People

By: Emma D.

A story with a promising, thought-provoking title, Angie Thomas' The Hate U Give is a heart-wrenching, inspirational Young Adult story that tackles themes such as racism and police brutality with a sixteen-year-old black girl as a protagonist.

Starr Carter lives in the "inner-city" area of an unnamed state and goes to a prep school a few cities away. At her school, she has to hold up a mask so people don't see her as the "angry black girl" or the "girl from the ghetto." When her childhood best friend was killed by a police officer and was unarmed at the event, Starr has a big secret she can't tell anyone, especially people at her school: she was there with him when it happened.

Media covers the story, and Starr finds it harder to cope with the traumatic experience of seeing her friend get murdered and is afraid of the backlash she may get from social media and from peers at her school. As the story progresses, she is faced with an ultimatum: speak out or stay silent.

Political fiction stories are undoubtedly important for society. Police brutality and antiblack racism are prevalent in today's society, and reading a story written by a black woman about the experiences black people face causes the story to resonate with you and think about it for days after. Not only did the message cause me to consider this book one of my favorites, but Thomas' writing style for her characters made the characters seem true to life. Her protagonist character was believable as a teenager, and the writer's voice captured the language well. One critique could be how the story seems fast-paced at times, but it reflects real life in my opinion and did not distract me from any important parts of the story.

This is a raw, realistic story that will be deemed a classic one day in libraries everywhere. The touching and heart-wrenching details along with the realism of police brutality make this book a must-read for everyone and one of the best books I've read in a long time. Angie Thomas deserves the recognition she has gotten for this book, and will definitely wow me with future books written by her.