One part of the book that I wasn’t expecting to love as much as I did was the actual rapping. (It makes a lot more sense in the book.) Thomas excels at making the abnormal into just another aspect of Bri’s daily life, tempering it so the reader never feels overwhelmed -unless, of course, they’re supposed to. But of course, the devil is in the details: her mom is struggling to find a new job due to her previous drug addiction, and said friend is suddenly dating a new girl, who is dead set on making Bri the face of some students’ campaign in protest of the school’s racist security. Bri is mainly focused on becoming a rapper, yes, but part of what makes the book such an excellent commentary is its focus on Bri’s daily life and struggles: pretty much any teenager can relate to her mom’s ACT studying lectures, or her unrequited crush on her best friend. That summary is accurate, but might give you the wrong impression. Along the way, she discovers the costs of fame -and how quickly it can become infamy. But when her mother loses her job, Bri takes it upon herself to make her dream a reality, if only to pay the bills. The novel follows Bri, a sixteen-year-old whose dream is to become a famous rapper, following in the footsteps of her father, who passed away years ago.
However, Thomas clearly has more stories to tell, including that of her second novel, “On the Come Up,” which highlights a different side to the effects of racism, intertwining it with the struggles of poverty and fame. After the success of her debut novel “The Hate U Give,” which has enjoyed 117 weeks and counting on the New York Times Best Sellers list, Angie Thomas could have chosen to end on that remarkably high note and simply continued to ride its success for as long as possible.
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