The Hate U Give, a New York Times Bestseller by Angie Thomas, tells a heart-wrenching story of an African-American girl named Starr Carter. Starr constantly floats between two completely different worlds: Garden Heights, the poor black neighborhood she lives in, and Williamson, the private suburban prep school she attends. With two drastically different lives, Starr learns to “code switch.” At her fancy private school, Starr watches her actions and words carefully to avoid sounding or acting “ghetto”, but when the weekend comes around, Starr switches back to her Garden Heights self. As much as Starr wants to keep her two worlds separated, the tragic death of her childhood best friend, Khalil, who is shot by a white policeman while unarmed, pushes her two lives closer and closer together until they finally clash. As Khalil becomes a national headline, some, including Starr’s best friend at Williamson, are convinced that Khalil was a drug dealer and gangbanger. The injustice and lack of investigation quickly turns peaceful protests into violence. The only resolution now lies with Starr, the only witness, truth, and hope. Will she speak out?

Through this book, Angie Thomas not only tells a heartbreaking story but also addresses the complex social issue of police brutality. Prior to reading this book, I had heard of several police shootings but was unaware of the injustice and severity of the problem. However, the thorough descriptions in this book showed me the pain and depression the shooting brings to Khalil’s family and friends; the moment when Starr watched her childhood best friend die hit me harder than expected. As she burst into tears, drops of water gushed down my face as well. This is what’s so magical about this book: it makes you feel things you’ve never felt before, and it makes you cry about things you’ve never cried about. I can confidently say that this masterpiece by Angie Thomas is far more impactful than any news articles that have ever been published.

“What is Tumblr anyway? Is it like Facebook?”
“No, and you’re forbidden to get one. No parents allowed. You guys already took over Facebook.”

I don’t know how this dialogue between Starr and her mom makes you feel, but it definitely draws me closer to the characters because it’s something that I would say to my parents. Like this dialogue, everything in this book is so close to reality that it feels like a true story even though it’s not. I think this is because, flipping through the book, I would say that roughly 80% is conversations between characters. At the time, I didn’t realize the impact the dialogues had on me, but looking back, I realize the reason I was so immersed in the story was that I was communicating with all of the characters through Starr. It was like talking to actual, real people.

The characters in the book are very well thought-out. From the tone in which Big Mav, Starr’s dad, talks, we can see that he is a tough man, but the way he cares for Starr and his wife shows that he has a kind and soft heart. Like Big Mav, every character has more than one side to them. Their words and actions are perfect reflections of their personalities, and their personalities reveal their lifestyles and life stories; every character has their own unique traits and characteristics, which means that each one of them has their own stories. These stories are what make the book so interesting to read.

To sum up, The Hate U Give is definitely a book worth reading for both teenagers and adults. With the soul-stirring plot and interesting characters, I’m sure this book will take your breath away if you give it the chance.