Verdict: 'The Hate U Give' is Angie Thomas' novel debut. And the verdict? A heartbreakingly topical and important read, dealing with systemic racism and police brutality.
Plot: 16 year old Starr Carter flees from gunshots at a party with her best friend Khalil, who offers to drive her home safely. Shortly after, their car is pulled over by a white police officer, ''Office One-Fifteen'', who shoots the unarmed Khalil at point blank range. As the only witness to the crime, Starr must decide whether to use her voice and testify against the officer. As the tension mounts, her life at a private school in the suburbs and her life in the local community of Garden Heights collide together with stunning velocity.
Review: Keep your hands visible. Don't make any sudden movements. These are the instructions which a 12 year old Starr and her older half-brother Seven are given by their Father, ''Big Mav'' and their Mother, if they are ever pulled over and stopped by the police. This is a story at the very heart of the Black Lives Matter movement and provides a chilling insight into a page of the parenting handbook for raising a black child in America today.
Starr's first person narrative is beautifully written, which gives the characters flesh and bones. It's because of this powerful narrative that I was so reluctant to watch the film after reading it. The characters were so sharply etched in my mind, I was convinced that no film could ever do the novella justice. But I was wrong. The film sticks to the key events of the narrative and the characters have been hand-picked to reflect the most intimate details in the book, from their tone and mannerisms to their Jordan sneakers.
When Starr finally summons up the courage to stand in front of a grand jury, the whole community hurtles through a series of extraordinary circumstances together, as they eagerly anticipate the verdict on Officer One-Fifteen and whether he will face charges. The book gives ''snitches get stitches'' a whole new meaning. King is the biggest drug dealer in Garden Heights and the leader of local gang, the King Lords. He is an abusive father and boyfriend and repeatedly threatens the Carter family for testifying in the wake of Khalil's murder, for fear that his narcotics business will be implicated by a legal investigation into Khalil's life.
Inspired by Tupac's THUG life concept, The Hate U Give is an utterly raw insight into the contemporary black experience in America and systemic racism. The ending will leave you reeling and aching for justice; justice for Khalil and indeed, justice for all of the other 'Khalils' who are victim to systemic racism, police brutality and who never quite make the cut for front page news.
The Hate U Give doesn't just f*** little infants, Thomas warns, it f**** everybody in society.
Antonia x
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