The Hate U Give

Story

Starr Carter is 16. She switches between two identities: her home life in a poor neighbourhood, and her school life in an elite high school in the suburbs. When she witnesses the fatal shooting of her unarmed friend by a police officer, she must decide whether to do what’s right, or what’s easy.

Why we chose it

A powerfully told Young Adult novel inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement.

Where it came from

This is Angie Thomas’s debut novel, inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement. While working as a church secretary, she wrote the book during quiet periods and at night. Thomas is also a former teen rapper, and the first winner of the Walter Dean Myers Grant 2015, awarded by We Need Diverse Books.

Where it went next

The Hate U Give has sold more than two million copies worldwide and stayed in the US Bestseller list for a year. It has won a number of awards, including The British Book Awards Children’s Book of the Year, and the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, as well as being shorlisted for a Carnegie Award, winning the CILIP Carnegie Amnesty Honour.

It was adapted into an award-winning film in 2018, starring Amandla Stenberg.

Associated stories

Angie Thomas released another YA book in 2019, On the Come Up. This focusses on the teenager Bri, who wants to become the greatest rapper of all time.