Book Summary: The Hate U Give By Angie Thomas

Over the last month, our Grade 8 class has been reading books in the form of book clubs. I am here to recommend the book I read, which was “The Hate U Give” by Angie Thomas. “The Hate U Give” surrounds our main protagonist and narrator, Starr Carter, a 16-year-old black girl who is caught between two worlds, Garden Heights, the poor, predominantly black neighborhood where she lives, and Williamson Prep, the rich, white majority private school she attends. She confronts the realities of the racism she and her family face after the murder of her black childhood best friend, Khalil Harris, at the hands of a white police officer. Starr then finds herself in a position to find justice for Khalil and fight for what is right.

“The Hate U Give” is

It brings forward a raw, authentic retelling of an occurrence that is not shocking to most. Our main character, Starr Carter, is the only witness to Khalil’s murder, committed by a white police officer. Starr must fight against the racism, violence, and stereotypes she is faced with in the aftermath, which is very relevant today. Through Starr’s experiences, readers obtain a better awareness of the violence and cruelty that people of colour are put through by more privileged minorities and the authorities. This is shown after Starr felt ready to talk to investigators about Khalil’s death, they were determined to find a reason why Khalil brought his own death upon himself instead of recognizing the real reason he was killed. Khalil is black and white. They asked questions such as, “Do you know if Khalil sold narcotics?” to get an answer that would justify why the police officer, as Starr, puts it “pulled the trigger”. This assists the audience in understanding the many harsh stereotypes that are put upon black people, such as people believing that all black people carry a weapon, or that black people are more likely to be affiliated with gangs. “The Hate U Give” also encourages the audience to think about what they say and do, because even small actions and phrases can still be considered racist, even if it wasn’t the person’s intention. For instance, when Starr’s best friend, soon to become, ex-friend Hailey tells Starr to

Starr’s thoughts are nothing less than what you would expect from a teenager and can be very relatable for a 13-year-old, like me. Just like everyone else, Starr is unique in her own way but still acts like a normal teenager. She is mature in understanding the issues around her, yet still has moments of immaturity that show that she is still a young person. She often has the urge to defend what she believes in and protect herself from people commenting on her insecurities. All things that are relatable to young people. As a young black girl in the United States, Starr stands up for herself and the black minority when a racist comment is directed toward her, and just like most teenagers, she acts on impulse. We see this side of Starr when Starr’s best friend of 5 years, Hailey, tells Starr to “get over” Khalil’s death and that “He was probably going to end up dead anyway” “He was a drug dealer and a gangbanger” “Somebody was gonna kill him eventually”. At that moment, Starr punches Hailey in the face for not recognizing the seriousness of what she had just said. It would not have been realistic for Starr to act in a calm manner after being told to “move on” and act as if Hailey’s words were not offensive and racist. Even though this led to conflict, I appreciate that the author chose to write a convincing story, instead of making the story predictable. From the beginning of the book, it is