Book Bearings
Cover of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

The Hate U Give

  • 448 pages · about 7 hours
  • First published 2017
  • 59 editions

Bookshop.org links may earn us a commission. It supports independent bookstores and costs you nothing.

1 About this book

The Hate U Give is a 2017 young adult novel by Angie Thomas. It is Thomas's debut novel, expanded from a short story she wrote in college in reaction to the police shooting of Oscar Grant. The book is narrated by Starr Carter, a 16-year-old black girl from a poor neighborhood who attends an elite private school in a predominantly white, affluent part of the city. Starr becomes entangled in a national news story after she witnesses a white police officer shoot and kill her childhood friend, Khalil. She speaks up about the shooting in increasingly public ways, and social tensions culminate in a riot after a grand jury decides not to indict the police officer for the shooting.

The Hate U Give was published on February 28, 2017, by HarperCollins imprint Balzer + Bray, which had won a bidding war for the rights to the novel. The book was a commercial success, debuting at number one on The New York Times young adult best-seller list, where it remained for 50 weeks.

  • Race relations
  • Prejudice & Racism
  • Racism
  • Witnesses
  • Young adult fiction
  • People & Places
  • United States
  • Social Themes

2 What to expect

A teenager sees a police officer kill her unarmed friend, and must decide whether to speak out. Funny and furious, with a strong voice, about race, justice and community; strong language.

Good for readers who want: a story about justice, a strong voice, and a book for teens.

3 About Angie Thomas

Born 1988

Angela Thomas (born September 20, 1988) is an American young adult author, known for her contributions to young adult fiction. She gained international recognition for her novel The Hate U Give (2017) which addresses police violence and racism. Her second young adult novel, On the Come Up, was released on February 25, 2019. Her most recent novel, Concrete Rose, was released on January 12, 2021.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

4 More by Angie Thomas

5 Similar books

Find a book that fits your moment