The Hate U Give / Angie Thomas - 4****

[Book Concierge]

The Hate U Give – Angie Thomas
Book on CD performed by Bahni Turpin
4****

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter is the narrator of this contemporary novel that deals with some major social issues facing America. Starr and her friend Khalil are driving home from a party when they are stopped by a policeman, presumably for a broken taillight. Things go badly and Starr is left reeling from the trauma of the event, as well as her guilt and fear.

I love the way that Thomas writes these characters. Starr is, in many respects, a typical teenager. She has a boyfriend (who she’s kept hidden from her parents), she works part time in her father’s store, she fights with her brothers, and hangs out with her girlfriends. But she also struggles with leading a dual life: Starr from the hood, whose father is an ex-con and former gang member, vs Starr the good pupil at a predominantly white private school.

Thomas gives Starr a relatively stable home environment: a family-owned house (including a fenced yard and vegetable garden), neighbors who look out for one another, and, most importantly, two parents who love one another, work hard, set a good example and try to give their children the education they’ll need to succeed. She also gives Starr a couple of very good friends, both at her high school and in the neighborhood.

The realities of living in an urban neighborhood that is stressed by unemployment, gangs, poverty, drug use and broken families are all present, however. Her parents give her “the talk” when she’s about twelve – No, not the birds and the bees talk (though they do that as well), but the “here’s how to behave when the police stop you” talk. Something that most parents never even consider a necessity. Starr is keenly aware of the differences in her own situation as opposed to that of her neighborhood acquaintances; and of the even larger differences between her home and that of her fellow students at her privileged high school.

I thought Thomas did a good job showing Starr’s emotional swings; she’s scared, angry, anxious, and numb. But she also experiences love, joy and humor. There are no easy answers here, and in fact the novel raises more questions than it gives solutions. But these are issues than need examining, and this is a great way to start the conversation.

Bahni Turpin does a superb job narrating the audio. She really shows the range of Starr’s emotions as the events unfold. I also liked the way she interpreted Maverick and Lisa (Starr’s parents), as well as her boyfriend, Chris. It’s an emotionally charged story, but Turpin never over-acted the story. Brava.


LINK to my review