The Hate U Give (The Hate U Give, #1)

by Angie Thomas

[thepunktheory]

Full book vs. movie review on my blog coming soon!

Let's see, where do we begin?
I started with the book, so you'll get my thoughts on that first.
Only two chapters in, I was already crying. This book may not be perfect but it certainly is touching. From the very get-go, you are sucked in and feel deeply for the characters. That's because we kick things off not with a fizzle but with a bang that hits you right in the feels. When Khalil is murdered I got not only sad but also so extremely angry at the whole world.
The exploration of the aftermath is done rather well and Starr is relatable. While I did enjoy her development, I felt like some parts of the story were over the top. For example, despite being written nicely, it felt too in your face how Angie Thomas dealt with the other kid Starr's parents help out (trying to dance around spoilers here). Thomas was trying a bit too hard to underline what good people they are and how amazing the community can be. The story would have worked just as well without that.
Generally speaking, some parts just were too set up. Starr's dad's past. Starr's uncle's job. I'm not sure how to better explain this, but if you read the book you'll probably know what I mean.
After the book really affected me, I was a little wary to see the film. Surely, the adaptation can't hold up to that? Well, the movie did make me cry as well. However, as a whole, I felt a bit less of an impact. Certain side plots were left out, some things were simplified and I think it really took away from the strength of the story. Even the story was set up a bit too neatly in the book, it hits you hard. The film is well done but doesn't reach the same intensity.
What I would like to praise is the cast. I was rather surprised to see Anthony Mackie in this, but he did a marvelous job. Just like everybody else and especially Amandla Stenberg. She gives a strong performance and steals the show. The only one I didn't love, however, was KJ Apa as her boyfriend. First of all, it was SO weird to see him with dark instead of red hair after watching Riverdale. Furthermore, I didn't love his character to begin with but they took out some of the depth he had in the novel and that certainly doesn't help.