The Hate U Give

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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas is a deep and emotional read about a young girl grieving the loss of her best friend at the hands of police brutality. While that is what we do see on the surface, the story takes readers on a deep and emotional ride that is political and all too real. Some of the themes we see in this book such as figuring out a sense of identity and code-switching are themes we have seen in other novels we have read such as in The True Diary and in Brown Girl Dreaming. What makes this book special though is Starr's honest narrative. Starr tells readers pretty early in the book that when she is at the "white" school she is just cool by default because she is one of the only black kid there (11), but that she also she could just be herself too like Will from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is too (35). This indicates she has to wear a mask in front of others so she doesn't fit the "black stereotype" label of being ghetto or angry. By living her life this way, however, Starr begins to see the implications of stifling her voice.

What makes this story different is the all too serious reality of what Starr has to face. We get to see more community as well in this story who love and support Starr through the storms. This show of family and community support plays a big part in the story in helping Starr find her voice. I think many adolescents and people of color can find similarities in Starr's story. It was beautiful to see this young girl stand up and find the courage to use her voice to stand up for what she believes in. I loved this story in every way and I like that It did not use humor to mask any pain, but It was instead very real and raw. I think that It is so important to bring books such as this one to adolescent's attention so that they may also be informed about the struggles and real problems other races may face as they live their life. I believe this book has something for everyone and the heavy Tupac influence will also attract many lovers of poetry and hip hop. One of my favorite quotes from the author that concludes the book stems from a Tupac quote. Thomas says, "To every kid in Georgetown and in all " the Gardens" of the world: your voices matter, your dreams matter, your lives matter. Be roses that grow in the concrete." (acknowledgments). I believe everyone can be touched and moved to change from this powerful story and It is a message that will stay with adolescents for a very long time.

Comments

  1. Ally DunlapNovember 12, 2019 at 8:42 AM

    Eva, your blog post is so well written! I like how you include the parts of Starr that are important to her like identity and family. Is this a book you would want to teach to your class. If so, would you want to also include clips of the movie while reading along?

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  2. Griffin ThomasNovember 12, 2019 at 1:02 PM

    Eva, this was a great post. I love to dig into sub-themes or plots even more than the main themes. The code switching and finding identity were two incredibly important sub themes. These sub themes that we find in young adult literature often are used here to aid the understanding of the forefront themes. Im glad that you pointed this out. Her having to act different around her white schoolmates and code switch her voice around them helps give context to the overall themes of racial tension, oppression, and marginalization. Way to dig deeper in the text and find supporting sub themes. I really enjoyed reading this.

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  3. Kiara McVayNovember 14, 2019 at 5:36 PM

    This is a great post, I definitely agree with your statement of it needing to be portrayed to adolescents. I too like the purpose and plot of this story it can really impact someones life and the way they think.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Carter McGillNovember 15, 2019 at 8:23 AM

    Eva, your post is great. The one thing that stood out to me while I was reading was when you pointed out how Starr is wearing a mask. This is absolutely true throughout the whole novel and while she is doing this she isn't being herself. She is scared of what society is going to think of her so she puts on this mask, which limits her voice overall.

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  5. NoahGoodwinNovember 17, 2019 at 12:51 PM

    Eva, I love this post! Your inclusion of the aspect of community as a family is especially wonderful. It seems like a lot of us missed that in writing our blog posts, but your focus here is great! You have an interesting perspective as a person of color and I thoroughly enjoy how you conveyed that. Personally, I would love to know more about how this novel affected you as a person of color.

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