Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds – the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

(Teen/Young Adult, 444 pages, 2017)

Coalition Staff Member Review

Starr Carter is a teenage girl who continuously finds herself code-switching to balance her two very different worlds. First, the poor, mostly black neighborhood where she lives and, second, the private school filled with wealthy peers in a predominantly white community where she attends school. The book walks us through Starr’s struggles with racism, police brutality resulting in her childhood friend’s death, and the pressures she faces from people in both of her communities to speak out, bend the truth, or remain silent. Does Starr have it within herself to find her voice and stand up for what’s right?

This book captures the raw emotions and explores the real battles of racism that many black Americans deal with every day. It is a powerful read and eye-opening. As each chapter unfolds, the author takes us deeper into the struggles of the main character. The Hate U Give is an excellent book for both teenagers and adults and will prepare them to have candid conversations with others around the topics of race, police brutality, and activism.

Author: Angie Thomas
ISBN: 978-0-06-249853-3
Count: 1