The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Starr Carter is one person in her neighborhood, a place she reluctantly refers to as “the ghetto,” and another person at school, an expensive private school where she is one of a handful of minorities.  But when Starr is the only witness to the murder of Khalil, one of her best friends, at the hands of a police officer, Starr finds it harder and harder to keep her neighborhood persona separate from her school persona. The police, the media, the local gang, and the community each assert their versions of who Khalil was and how he died. But will Starr find the courage to stand up for Khalil now that he can no longer speak for himself? This novel is absolutely perfect for a book club with each chapter offering up new issues to unpack on issues like police violence, gangs, interracial dating, class divides, family dynamics, friendship, activism, race relations, and white privilege. Sure to be a popular independent read. --Anne Lotito-Schuh

Thomas, Angie. The Hate U Give. New York, NY: Balzer & Bray/Harperteen. 2017. Print.