Review:
In the novel, The Hate U Give, the book showcases 16-year old Starr as the main character. Starr lives in a less wealthy environment and struggles with the problems of racism in her society. As a member of the black community, she faces day to day struggles in her life. However, her life drastically changes as her friend, Khalil, is shot by a police officer. It doesn’t come as a surprise to Starr that the police officer is white although it shell-shocks her that he had to be killed on the spot with no real offense. The sheer brutality of the officer’s actions were engraved in her head. With the blood of Khalil on her shirt, and the endless tears coming down Starr’s eyes, her parents cannot believe it.
Not only does Starr have to struggle with the loss of his childhood friend, she also has to deal with the ignorant and racist society. Because she is black, the impertinent actions of white people are taken less harshly. The violence and discord between the two different classes causes struggle and justification for the case of Khalil. During the police’s investigation on the death of Khalil, it came as a surprise that the police were asking ridiculous questions. Such as whether he was ever a bad person or a troublemaker. Even though Starr denies the accusations with confidence, the police still are skeptical of her answers. She is forced to stand up strong for her friend against a society not willing to listen or understand her situation. Eventually, Starr is held in a grand jury about the case of Khalil. Even though her tough efforts were strong, the jury still decided not to prosecute the police officer that killed Khalil in the shooting. Even though justice was not served for Khalil, there was almost nothing they could do about it. Starr goes on to protest against the racism in her society. In addition, her community joins her in an act to protest. Their efforts are interrupted by none other than the police. The book closes out as Starr vows to serve justice and protect her community against her society. No matter the struggle.
Reaction:
The brutality of the police in this novel came as a big shocker as police officers are not like this normally. In addition, I also found the harsh language to be a bit surprising as well. The book was very memorable and a book you cannot forget. The message was very strong and the plot became better as the novel progressed. I enjoyed that the problem of the novel became apparent almost instantly in the book. If it didn’t, my interest could’ve been lost sooner.
The book overall was an interesting read and would highly recommend it to any young adults. Even though the book has several trigger warnings and inappropriate language, the plot still came out in the end.
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