5 stars
It took me way too long to start reading this but I am so glad I finally did.
A hard-hitting and heartfelt book of family, human connection, grief, activism, and empowerment.
Wonderfully written. This book evokes so many emotions: joy, sorrow, guilt, anger. There are so many difficult topics including death, police shootings, gang violence, and domestic abuse, but it was refreshing to see how Starr learned, grew, and empowered herself.
I also love that the book doesn’t solely focus on Starr’s trauma. We see her being annoyed by her little brother, learning things from her dad, and being goofy with her boyfriend. She deals with many things related to race like code switching, racist jokes, other’s assumptions, the talk, and police interactions, but we also see moments were she is just a high schooler dealing with parents, friends, siblings, and her boyfriend. She’s a collector of Jordans, a lover of music, and a beast on the basketball court. I love that Starr was presented as an actual person not just a way to use her trauma as a plot device. It makes the message that much more real.
Thomas also does an excellent job of presenting information in a way that isn’t preachy. It feels so natural. Using interactions with Starr’s father, Thomas presents economic reasons people may sell drugs and join gangs, ways people in the neighborhood are disenfranchised, and the teachings and messages of Tupac.
The edition I read also included an interview with Angie Thomas, Amandla Stenberg (who played Starr in the film), and George Tillman Jr. (director of the film), which was really interesting. It was so sweet to read about how they connected over the material and them geeking out over each other.
A fantastic read. I’m disheartened by how relevant this book still is, but I really do believe everyone should read it at least once in their life, whether they relate personally to the content or as an outsider who can gain insight on the topics presented.