fibrebundle's review against another edition
Very engaging and relatable story about the struggles of growing up in black america told through an unintenionally brave young girl. The book is a reminder that communities can come together and when together they can impact a change and 'rebuild' something better than before.
caitlin01's review against another edition
5.0
5/5 stars. that doesn't feel like enough, but goodreads won't let me give it 6 so here we are.
"'sometimes things will go wrong, but the key is to never stop doing right.'"
i remember precisely where i was when i started and finished reading this book.
the first time, i was standing in the middle of some airport in canada when i folded open the cover of the shiny new paperback; i was sitting listlessly on the bed of a hotel in toronto when i closed it.
the second time, i was sitting on a charter bus to vermont when i opened my now slightly worn cover; i was sitting on my bed, blinking back tears when i closed it and put it back on my nightstand.
there's going to be a third time, just you wait.
the hate u give is a beautiful novel about growing up as a black kid in america. as a white person who grew up in a rural and high income area, my upbringing could not have been more different than the protagonist, starr, who grows up in an urban, low income black neighborhood.
i make an active effort to be aware and anti-racist and support social movements including blm, but i will never experience or fully grasp what is to be a black person in today's society, because that's not my reality. all i can do is try to educate myself. this book does a wonderful job of allowing me to understand this very common reality that i am otherwise not exposed to.
“‘listen! The Hate U—the letter U—Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody. T-H-U-G L-I-F-E. meaning what society gives us as youth, it bites them in the ass when we wild out.’”
starr's extended family is large and the novel carries a large cast of characters, all of them multi-faceted and personable. this book focuses a lot on starr's family, allowing it to tell more stories than it would be able to through only one character.
primarily, though, it follows starr's struggle as a police officer shoots her friend, khalil, in front of her, and the legal and social battle that ensues.
this story triggered all of my empathy responses as a human and i was screaming, crying, shaking with anger, screaming some more, and crying again. that is what this book is meant to do. this all too common narrative of excessive unnecessary police brutality and ingrained racism happens constantly. all the time. with disastrous consequences.
not to even mention the off-hand racism that starr and her family faces on a daily basis.
“ive seen it happen over and over again: a black person gets killed just for being black, and all hell breaks loose. i’ve tweeted rip hashtags, reblogged pictures on tumblr, and signed every petition out there. i always said that if i saw it happen to somebody, i would have the loudest voice, make sure the world knew what went down. now i am that person, and i’m too afraid to speak.”
this book also has some interesting dialogue around code switching. starr, who lives in a lower class black community but goes to school at an upper class white high school, finds herself switching between two versions of herself.
“funny how it works with white kids though. it’s dope to be black until it’s hard to be black.”
not only are the messages, ideas, and characters beautiful, but it is written in a very accessible way. despite covering very serious issues, it manages to be past paced and engaging with more simplistic prose, allowing everyone (readers and non-readers alike) to be able to connect with and enjoy the book, and hopefully see and think through a different perspective. basically, it should be required reading for life. i cannot say that loud enough.
i don't say this lightly, but if you are reading one book this year, read this one. it's important.
"'brave doesn't mean you're not scared, starr. it means you go on even though you're scared. and you're doing just that.'"
"'sometimes things will go wrong, but the key is to never stop doing right.'"
i remember precisely where i was when i started and finished reading this book.
the first time, i was standing in the middle of some airport in canada when i folded open the cover of the shiny new paperback; i was sitting listlessly on the bed of a hotel in toronto when i closed it.
the second time, i was sitting on a charter bus to vermont when i opened my now slightly worn cover; i was sitting on my bed, blinking back tears when i closed it and put it back on my nightstand.
there's going to be a third time, just you wait.
the hate u give is a beautiful novel about growing up as a black kid in america. as a white person who grew up in a rural and high income area, my upbringing could not have been more different than the protagonist, starr, who grows up in an urban, low income black neighborhood.
i make an active effort to be aware and anti-racist and support social movements including blm, but i will never experience or fully grasp what is to be a black person in today's society, because that's not my reality. all i can do is try to educate myself. this book does a wonderful job of allowing me to understand this very common reality that i am otherwise not exposed to.
“‘listen! The Hate U—the letter U—Give Little Infants Fucks Everybody. T-H-U-G L-I-F-E. meaning what society gives us as youth, it bites them in the ass when we wild out.’”
starr's extended family is large and the novel carries a large cast of characters, all of them multi-faceted and personable. this book focuses a lot on starr's family, allowing it to tell more stories than it would be able to through only one character.
primarily, though, it follows starr's struggle as a police officer shoots her friend, khalil, in front of her, and the legal and social battle that ensues.
this story triggered all of my empathy responses as a human and i was screaming, crying, shaking with anger, screaming some more, and crying again. that is what this book is meant to do. this all too common narrative of excessive unnecessary police brutality and ingrained racism happens constantly. all the time. with disastrous consequences.
not to even mention the off-hand racism that starr and her family faces on a daily basis.
“ive seen it happen over and over again: a black person gets killed just for being black, and all hell breaks loose. i’ve tweeted rip hashtags, reblogged pictures on tumblr, and signed every petition out there. i always said that if i saw it happen to somebody, i would have the loudest voice, make sure the world knew what went down. now i am that person, and i’m too afraid to speak.”
this book also has some interesting dialogue around code switching. starr, who lives in a lower class black community but goes to school at an upper class white high school, finds herself switching between two versions of herself.
“funny how it works with white kids though. it’s dope to be black until it’s hard to be black.”
not only are the messages, ideas, and characters beautiful, but it is written in a very accessible way. despite covering very serious issues, it manages to be past paced and engaging with more simplistic prose, allowing everyone (readers and non-readers alike) to be able to connect with and enjoy the book, and hopefully see and think through a different perspective. basically, it should be required reading for life. i cannot say that loud enough.
i don't say this lightly, but if you are reading one book this year, read this one. it's important.
"'brave doesn't mean you're not scared, starr. it means you go on even though you're scared. and you're doing just that.'"
daisywilliams's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
jarichan's review against another edition
4.0
Dieses Buch hat mich an vielen Stellen einfach nur wütend gemacht. Wütend deswegen, weil diese Dinge passieren. Nicht nur in Amerika, sondern überall. Genau deswegen sind Bücher wie dieses so wichtig. Es braucht Autoren, die den Mut haben, Dinge auszusprechen und aufzuzeigen, wie sich Betroffene fühlen, was in ihnen vor geht. Kein Medium kann das besser als das Buch. Ich wäre sogar dafür, dass "The Hate U Give" auch bei uns als Schullektüre angenommen wird.
icanread_'s review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
sahibkaur's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
waxingquixotic's review against another edition
4.0
I just deleted a long review that really didn’t say anything important, and this is an important book.
Angie Thomas picks you up from whatever world you’re living in, and she drops you right smack in the middle of a new one. Events unfold rapidly, and things you’re used to seeing on TV and walking away from are given a voice. You feel as though you’re right in the middle of the plot with the other characters. You can’t just look away.
The story is all too familiar, unfortunately. The characters feel like real people. The dialogue is fresh and the pop culture refreshes breathe life into the story. There are times when Thomas hits pause on pressing forward to just stop and let us listen in as her characters watch Fresh Prince or discuss their new shoes. It adds a unique layer of development to the people and places described in the pages of the book. They aren’t just there on the pages, they feel real, even down the the day-to-day mundane stuff they find themselves in.
But it’s the heavier, awful stuff presented here that makes the book so powerful. Hearing about events like these off the TV screen and in a book is completely different. Even though this isn’t real, it feels all too real, and the perspective really challenges how you think about this stuff, no matter where you land on it.
At times fun and lighthearted, other times heavy and sad, The Hate U Give is powerful and relevant and should be read by adults and young adults alike. It took me into a world less known to me and gave me a new perspective. When a book can transcend mere entertainment and challenge how you think about something or change you in some way... that’s always a great experience. Something you don’t just walk away from and move on, but actually sit in for a bit and think about.
That’s what this book did for me. Definitely check it out if you haven’t read it yet.
Angie Thomas picks you up from whatever world you’re living in, and she drops you right smack in the middle of a new one. Events unfold rapidly, and things you’re used to seeing on TV and walking away from are given a voice. You feel as though you’re right in the middle of the plot with the other characters. You can’t just look away.
The story is all too familiar, unfortunately. The characters feel like real people. The dialogue is fresh and the pop culture refreshes breathe life into the story. There are times when Thomas hits pause on pressing forward to just stop and let us listen in as her characters watch Fresh Prince or discuss their new shoes. It adds a unique layer of development to the people and places described in the pages of the book. They aren’t just there on the pages, they feel real, even down the the day-to-day mundane stuff they find themselves in.
But it’s the heavier, awful stuff presented here that makes the book so powerful. Hearing about events like these off the TV screen and in a book is completely different. Even though this isn’t real, it feels all too real, and the perspective really challenges how you think about this stuff, no matter where you land on it.
At times fun and lighthearted, other times heavy and sad, The Hate U Give is powerful and relevant and should be read by adults and young adults alike. It took me into a world less known to me and gave me a new perspective. When a book can transcend mere entertainment and challenge how you think about something or change you in some way... that’s always a great experience. Something you don’t just walk away from and move on, but actually sit in for a bit and think about.
That’s what this book did for me. Definitely check it out if you haven’t read it yet.
offinherownmind's review against another edition
5.0
It breaks my heart to read the details in the book and know that people actually go through experiences like them. Stunning, truthful book. I hope that whoever reads The Hate U Give is impacted to do something and speak up.
maries_shelf's review against another edition
5.0
“Sometimes you can do everything right and things will still go wrong. The key is to never stop doing right.”
emosucculents's review against another edition
4.0
this book deserved every single ounce of hype that it got. it was so good.