The hate u give by Angie Thomas: A Book review

I am sure no one would be unaware of the police brutality against black and the massive movement about #BlackLivesMatter in 2017. The Hate U Give could be easily one of those books that everyone, irrespective of the age group, should be reading if at all you want to be a part of the change or at least to know how these things happen and affect people.

Have you read The hate you give by Angie Thomas? What are your favorite young adult books? Do you read young adult books? Let's chat. Click To Tweet

About The Hate U Give

The Hate U Give review

Book Name: The Hate U Give 

Author: Angie Thomas

Genre: Fiction – YA

Characters: Starr Carter, Big Mav, Lisa, Seven, Khalil

Setting: The USA

Plot Summary of The Hate U Give

Starr, a 16-year-old African American kid, is stuck between two worlds. She lives at Garden Heights, a ghetto with gangsters and drug pushers. Her father Big Mav is a former gangster who took a blame and chose to go to prison so that he could get out of the system and lead a normal gang-free life. He wants their ghetto to be better and a safe haven for his kids.

She is one of the two black kids in her rich and predominantly white, prep school. She falls for a white boy, whom she has to hide from her father because he is ‘white’ and has two white best friends. Her mother is a nurse who wants to save her children from the ghetto life by taking them away.

Stuck between the two worlds and parents who have different views about their lives, Starr feels an outsider in both places. Starr understands her lives are universes apart and has never had to choose between them – until the fateful night, her unarmed friend Khalil gets shot by a cop in front of her eyes.

Should she remain silent, as her mother and uncle want her to be, and save herself from the wrath of the public and her own peers at school? Or should she put her life in danger, give a voice to the cause that may lead nowhere?

What do you do when your best friend is being a bully and a racist, intentionally or not? Do you confront her, putting your entire friendship jeopardy or pretend it was unintentional and you are just overreacting? How long can one hide a white boyfriend from your father?

Book review of The Hate U Give

The Hate U Give is essentially a coming of age story in the present American scenario, dealing with racism, bullying and violence. It is inspired by the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement, obviously but is much more than that. It is an honest account of a strong black family that has nothing to do with the gangs or drugs but is put to trial because of their skin colour. I do not want to spoil your reading experience by giving out any spoilers.

It is not just the strong storyline that made The Hate U Give the NY! bestseller but the well-written characters and a sprinkle of humour that made the story all the more fun to read. The writing is just perfect for YA, not becoming too political, yet talking about all the main themes like a true social commentary.

Yes, there are few characters that were flat and the ending with the perfect boyfriend was just too good to be true. But hey, those did not seem to be a big issue to me, all things considered. It is, after all, a young adult book that can be enjoyed by people of all ages.

As a person who is not living in the USA, I may not have faced such an incident in my real life, but violence and prejudice against colour, cast and creed are no different in any other country. That is one of the things that makes The Hate U Give close to my heart. As someone who doesn’t want to be an unintentional racist or offend anyone without meaning to, this book is an eye-opener. It made me think about my stand and actions on certain topics which is exactly what was expected of this book.

Bottom-line

The Hate U Give is surely one of the best books I have read this year. Books like this and Feel me fall makes me gain more faith in the YA genre. I have not stopped raving about this book to anyone I know even though I read this book about a month back. I can not recommend this book enough. READ THIS BOOK.

Similar reviews you might like

Pin me!

The hate you give by Angie Thomas Review Pinterest

Let us talk

Have you read The hate you give by Angie Thomas? What are your favorite young adult books? Do you read young adult books? Let’s chat.

22 Comments

  1. Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books

    That was such a lovely review 🙂 I loved The Hate U Give so much and I think it’s a book everyone should read. It was so powerful and it really made me think about this whole situation I may not be too familiar with, or at least not to this level, since I don’t live in the USA either.
    Great review 🙂

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I don’t think none of us has been spared these kinda prejudices, some way or the other we have all been affected. THUG is definitely on my top reads of the year.

      Reply
  2. Ash Williams

    This is on my Christmas list, hoping to read it soon!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I am sure you will love it.

      Reply
  3. lindaslittlelibrary

    Great review. Such a good book. One of my favorites this year. As you said this really was an eye-opener

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Read this book right away. It is so worth it.

      Reply
  4. Swibells

    This book has been on my TBR for so long. Now I’ll definitely have to pick it up ASAP. Great review!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Pl do pick it up, Can’t recommend enough.

      Reply
  5. Megan @ Ginger Mom

    This sounds like it really has a lot to it. I might have to pick it up just to see what all the hype is about 🙂 Great job on your review. I loved all the different points you touched on!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      It is soo worth thte hype Megan.

      Reply
  6. Whispering Stories

    I reviewed this book earlier in the year. I absolutely loved it. So powerful. Glad it’s being made into a film.

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      Yes I am excited about its cast too.

      Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thanks Kitty. Did you get a chance to read this book yet?

      Reply
      • lilkadykitty

        No, I haven’t. I really want to though.

        Reply
    • Gayathri

      Thanks Nandini.

      Reply
  7. empressdj

    I love all consuming books like this

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      You HAVE to read this DJ!

      Reply
  8. bostonbookreader

    This was such an amazing and powerful book, great review!!

    Reply
    • Gayathri

      I totally agree!

      Reply

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. Book review: The Upside of Unrequited | Elgee Writes - […] for is the diverse representation of minorities, interracial and LGBTQ couples and families. The characters are diverse, of course,…

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Gayathri

Gayathri

Gayathri has been reviewing books since 2010. When she is not reading books or creating online content, she works as a writer and a digital marketer. Head over to meet me!