I’m a self-proclaimed Hallmark movie lover. I truly adore predictable movies with happy endings, because...life. In “real life” there are too many unpredictable moments and unhappy endings. I love reading books that are happy and predictable as well. The Hate You Give is not necessarily the type of book I usually read, but sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone to grow. One of the ways to grow is to have people in our lives that challenge our thoughts, beliefs, and ways of doing things. I’m in a group, Sisters in Christ, where we get together and discuss hot topic racial issues in a safe place of love and understanding (if anyone wants an invite to this, let me know). One of my sisters from this group shared this book with me, and I cant wait to discuss it with her.
The Hate You Give is a fictional depiction of something that can and does happen in many cities all over the United States. It is about a girl named Starr who vascilates between two worlds: the private school she attends and the neighborhood where she lives. The book takes us on a journey of Starr’s self-discovery, as well as people discovery, after she witnesses a cop shoot her friend from her neighborhood.
The title of the book is based on Tupac’s acronym for T-H-U-G L-I-F-E. Read about this in the book, or look it up. It is important. Tupac defined what people are still trying to deny: what we “feed” our little one’s brains is lived out. From the 90’s to now, you would have to live under a rock if you didn’t know who Tupac was (or is...depending on what theory you believe). . What exactly are we feeding our kids with our words and actions? You don’t have to be a genius to figure that out, and I don’t think you have to be a genius to figure out that we need to un-learn hate and judgement. I’m learning that stereotyping and racism has a fine line between the 2. Some of the characters of this book are stereotypes, but it also goes deeper to explain that sometimes there is a reason for the stereotype. There is no easy fix for the hate that already exists in this world, but lets start with our little ones and teach them a new way, a better way. We all can work harder to love better, whichever “stereotype” we maybe living out, or trying to overcome.
The Hate You Give was hard for me to read for a lot of reasons. I don’t like cuss words, and I don’t tolerate them as a mama, but taking it out of this book would be unrealistic. So, my brain skimmed over those words as quickly as I could. Also, I found myself longing to be done with the book so that it could be all wrapped up with a happy, neat, and predictable ending. I read on realizing that even though this is fiction, there isn’t a neat bow to put on this and call it wrapped up. I squirmed through the swear words and the real life depiction of a world I know very little about.
I have been done reading this book for a little while now, and I find myself wondering what Starr is doing and if her relationship with her boyfriend is still going strong. I’m wondering if she is still struggling to be herself no matter where she is, and who is stepping up next to her in this journey? I wonder if she is still staying strong and what she is going to do next. I try to picture what part I would play in this story, and realize, its not just a story. Do my friends all know that I love them and support them? I wonder what am I “feeding” my kids and how can I help them grow up to love intentionally and effect change for the good?
I just want to encourage my friends: get out of your comfort zone and read something new. Read about something that might change (or at least challenge) your view on life. I appreciate the way this fiction book is affecting my reality. I do not want it to stop there! Let’s keep growing, friends!
