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A review by pastelwriter
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
challenging
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I'm going to try to be coherent in my review for this book, but if also else fails, what I really want you to take away from this review is that you should pick up this book if you haven't already. If you already own this book and have been putting it off for whatever reason, stop that this moment. The sooner you pick this book up, the more thankful you'll be that you didn't put it off longer. It IS that good, and it IS that important. Even if you do not find it to be a five star read, you will not regret reading it.
The Hate U Give is a novel inspired by the Black lives Matter movement. It centers around Starr a sixteen year old girl who witnesses the murder of her friend, Khalil, by a white police officer. She's now faced with the decision of whether or not to talk and what it will cost her if she speaks or if she doesn't.
Everything about this book is power. The story is raw and realistic, and all the more powerful for it. The power in this story is not solely in its plot and subject matter, it's in everything. The dialogue between the characters was definitely a source of very impactful messages. These conversations were definitely created to get a point across, but they never felt fake or unrealistic. You could very well imagine people in the real world saying all of these very same things. The characters were also all equally important and held their own brand of power. They all contributed key nuances to the story. They all had their own stories to tell, and they all enriched the main narrative with their differences. None of them were there to take up space, and I loved it. I love it when side characters feel as important to the plot as the main character(s).
The pacing of this novel was also a punch to the gut. Even as, at first, I didn't enjoy the audiobook narrator, I couldn't stop listening. The story was just addicting and impossible to put down. With all the different things going down, I would find myself time and time again picking up the audiobook because I wanted to know what happened next. By chapter 2 I was already more invested in this book than I am with most books. I was just completely suckered in, and it was a great feeling.
Additionally, the plot of this novel was as sharp as a knife. Angie Thomas wasn't playing around when she wrote this book. She chose all the topics carefully and crafted beautifully a heartbreaking, inspirational, and empowering story. Incredible work, really.
I can't conclude this review without talking about how impacting it was to read the scene where Khalil is killed. Even though you didn't know him that well, that moment when the cop shoots him not once but THREE times just leaves you devastated and angry and incredulous. The fact that Starr is telling you all the "mistakes" Khalil makes to land him in that situation with the cop, only makes you grow angrier that they're considered mistakes at all. It's powerful stuff. Really powerful. It hurts all the more because you know it happens in the real world all the time.
All in all, please do yourself the favor of picking this book up. We all need to read it, and then read it again.
The Hate U Give is a novel inspired by the Black lives Matter movement. It centers around Starr a sixteen year old girl who witnesses the murder of her friend, Khalil, by a white police officer. She's now faced with the decision of whether or not to talk and what it will cost her if she speaks or if she doesn't.
Everything about this book is power. The story is raw and realistic, and all the more powerful for it. The power in this story is not solely in its plot and subject matter, it's in everything. The dialogue between the characters was definitely a source of very impactful messages. These conversations were definitely created to get a point across, but they never felt fake or unrealistic. You could very well imagine people in the real world saying all of these very same things. The characters were also all equally important and held their own brand of power. They all contributed key nuances to the story. They all had their own stories to tell, and they all enriched the main narrative with their differences. None of them were there to take up space, and I loved it. I love it when side characters feel as important to the plot as the main character(s).
The pacing of this novel was also a punch to the gut. Even as, at first, I didn't enjoy the audiobook narrator, I couldn't stop listening. The story was just addicting and impossible to put down. With all the different things going down, I would find myself time and time again picking up the audiobook because I wanted to know what happened next. By chapter 2 I was already more invested in this book than I am with most books. I was just completely suckered in, and it was a great feeling.
Additionally, the plot of this novel was as sharp as a knife. Angie Thomas wasn't playing around when she wrote this book. She chose all the topics carefully and crafted beautifully a heartbreaking, inspirational, and empowering story. Incredible work, really.
I can't conclude this review without talking about how impacting it was to read the scene where Khalil is killed. Even though you didn't know him that well, that moment when the cop shoots him not once but THREE times just leaves you devastated and angry and incredulous. The fact that Starr is telling you all the "mistakes" Khalil makes to land him in that situation with the cop, only makes you grow angrier that they're considered mistakes at all. It's powerful stuff. Really powerful. It hurts all the more because you know it happens in the real world all the time.
All in all, please do yourself the favor of picking this book up. We all need to read it, and then read it again.