‘The Hate U Give’ An Epic Novel We Should All Read
Angie Thomas has created one of ‘those books’, you know, the ones you pick up and can’t put down so you binge read it within a matter of days, ignoring calls, staying home missing out on events just to finish it. I don’t know what took me so long to pick up this book, I had seen pictures of the book all over social media, but until I read the book jacket for myself I wasn’t dedicated to adding it to my library. The story was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, the title “The Hate U Give was inspired by Tupac’s concept of “Thug Life”; explained in an interview Tupac gave years ago.
The Hate U Give tells a story police brutality from a witness’s point of view, uncovering the devastating effects on the friends and family, the community and culture in the aftermath of such a tragedy. The main character Starr comes from the hood but attends a private school where she is one of the very few black kids. She balances the two worlds as best as she can keeping them as separate as possible. It’s not until she witnesses the death of her close friend that her worlds collide fully opening her eyes up to the differences between both environments.
Never be ashamed of who you are and where you come from; “I can’t change where I come from or what I’ve been through, so why should I be ashamed of what makes me, me?.” One of the underlying themes in this book urges readers to take pride in where you are from no matter how glorious or poverty stricken that area may be. There’s beauty in each of these places depending on how you look at it. Towards the very end of the novel the main characters father is trying to revive his roses that be brought with him from the hood to their new suburban home. When asked whether they will survive he replies “Yeah. A li’l damaged, but alive. I’m gon’ try something different with them. Putting them in new soil can be like hitting a reset button.” Starr’s mother wants to leave the hood where as her father wants to stay, many people today struggle with this same decision, once you make enough to make it out do you stay or do you go? Are those who choose to leave giving up on their communities? I don’t know if the fathers dedication to the sustainment of his roses is pure irony or perfect symbolism, based off of Tupacs most famous poems “The Rose That Grew From Concrete”.
Starr also has a white boyfriend from school and the complexity of interracial dating comes to light. As much as she tries to be herself she is never fully herself, never allowing Chris to visit her home, never telling him about the problems surrounding her involvement in the murder of her best friends.
This book examines several struggles those in the black community face such as racism, classism and police brutality, it is an easily enjoyable read for anyone 14 and up and is priced at $18 for the hardback version. I would recommend this read and will probably purchase a couple copies for my niece and a friend. With her first novel being such a hit I’m anxiously awaiting the release of Angie Thomas’ second novel On The Come Up. Thankfully there is a movie in the works and we can see this book come to life.
