“What’s the point of having a voice, if you’re going to be silent in those moments you shouldn’t be.” An educated quote that is the main idea of the book. The book was inspired by the Black Lives Matter Movement and its founders Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors, and Opal Tometi. The author, Angie Thomas, an African American from Jackson, and the book was number one on New York Times bestseller listed for young-adult books. Readers should read this book because it will change your perspective of the world, also because people should fight with their voice instead of guns.

16-year-old Starr Carter, a black women that loves her J’s, cares for her family, and has a passion for basketball. Starr has a amazly American boyfriend, who feels he’s the only one who understands her both lives. Starr is Independent, and speaks about the truth. She was raise to learn about Black Jesus because that’s what her family believes in. When it comes to the street, her dad knows the answer. Considering he use to be a drug lord himself, until his family was more important than his gang.

She lives in two worlds: a fancy prep high school, filled with white rich kids; Garden Heights, a poor neighborhood filled with gun crimes, and drug lords where she lives.  At school, Starr has to be laid back because she doesn’t want to be refer to, “Ghetto” or “ Black Angry Girl.” Being a witness of another brutal murder of her own best friend, making her two worlds collage together into a complicated mess. The aftermath is when everything started to crash down. Khalil was the headline on the news, people called him, “thug,” “drug dealer.” Her so called “friends,” at school says,”He had it coming.”  In Garden Heights there’s riots happening for Khalil Justice. Starr is the only one who can give people the answers of what happened that night. But the real question is, will she help fight for justice? Or risk her own life?

I personally connect with this book because I identify with Black Lives Matter instead of gangs because gangs are involved in gun crimes and that adds up to deaths. Black Lives Matter are trying to prevent that from happening. In The Hate U Give, Starr’s neighborhood everyone fears the drug lord because he has a lot of power toward the people in the neighborhood.“ Snitching in the hood, gets you kilt.” BLM are stating we should stop the violence and use are voice.

This book is inspiring and powering because it helps the readers understand that life isn’t all that perfect. Starr Carter “voice” is the weapon that needs to be heard and not unspoken, that’s what makes this book motivating, to fight for what you believe in.