Hello all! Thankyou for the lovely response to this new venture from Kara and I, we’re really excited to share our insights into our recent reads, both with each other and with you in Beauteaful Stagey: The Read Alongs!

You’ll remember from our blogs yesterday announcing the project that we wanted to try and split the books into sections so we can have a series of posts on each read. Today, we’re covering Chapters 1 -9 of my first suggestion: Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give. Be sure to check out Kara’s blog for her answers and follow along with us at #BeauteafulStageyReadAlong

In these opening chapters, we’re introduced to Starr, her family and home life versus her school life, her friendship with Khalil and the aftermath as Khalil is murdered by a police officer when he and Starr are on their way home from a party. He starts by asking Khalil for his licence but as he repeatedly attempts to ask why he was pulled over, Khalil is forcibly removed from the car and once he goes to check on Starr is shot in the back three times. The officer mistakes Khalil for being armed when he was only retrieving his hairbrush.

I remember being surprised said event happens so early in the book, but it’s clever because it allows other themes to be explored and gives the basis for character development in light of the event, especially in Starr’s case. I loved how even though the tension is slowly built, it didn’t feel to me like the pace lagged, it hooked me in and I wanted to continue reading.

Here are the questions/talking points we came up with for this section, and my answers:

At the beginning of the book Starr flashes back to her parents having two talks with her as a child. One is about the birds and the bees. The second is about what precautions to take when encountering a police officer. Reflect on that. How is that different from your own childhood experiences?

The conversations are referenced in the opening few lines of chapter two, if I recall rightly, and it had quite an impact on me, to say the least, one that continued throughout the book as a whole. It was a huge moment where I was caught off guard by my own… “privilege”, if that’s the right phrase, as a young white woman with no inkling of what it’s like to experience racism, or how to approach encountering a police officer as my only experience with them has been the occasion when my parent’s home was burgled when I was just hitting my early teens, and I remember them going out of their way to make me feel reassured about the situation and comfortable around them – one told me about how they take fingerprints and so on. However, Starr’s situation is so far outside my own frame of reference, I couldn’t even think about how I’d react if a police officer pulled me over etc.

I do remember having the “talk” with my folks about the birds and bees, though it was nowhere near as to the point and easily direct as the one from Lisa!

Starr describes the idea that there are two versions of herself. How do her different experiences enhance the story? Can you relate to something similar?

I definitely think Starr becomes a more rounded character as a result of her experiences that she has as both versions of herself, and the way in which these two collide allows us to explore the themes of family, friendship and loyalty, among others. I can definitely relate to a certain degree in that I’m very conscious about how I talk about my disability depending on the situation and the people I’m with; there are definitely friends who I’m closer to that I find it easier to be much more open with about how it affects my life and my self esteem.

Often I hear from people I know saying that before they met me they had no idea of the challenges I face around access, and that my friendship has taught them to be more mindful about those with disabilities and the challenges they have. I’m very proud of that and will take away a similar sense of this book educating me.

The success and pitfalls of media and social media is an underlying theme of the book. Baring this in mind, how do you think hashtag culture and internet activism has played a role in our understanding of topics such as police brutality and racism? Is this always helpful?

There’s so much we could unpack here! To start off with, social media has been an overwhelmingly positive influence in my life; in my situation I can’t always make friends and access my community as easily as an able bodied person might do, and so I’ve “found my tribe” over the internet, and many of the people I came to know through a screen I have since met in person and forged really special bonds with, and think it can be a wonderful platform to educate and share one’s passions. I’ve learnt a lot about topics like racism, police brutality and politics through my social media.

That being said, I’m very aware of how toxic it can become, and how quickly it can become so. I tend not to engage with hashtag culture often, mainly for two reasons. The first: it can purely feel like you just get lost in the sea of comments, and secondly because I know how easily tone or meaning can get lost or misconstrued – I’d much rather have a lively, meaningful debate when the person is face to face with me! I tend to steer clear of engaging with anything that might be considered divisive in that sense, and only join in if I feel I could add anything worthwhile to what’s already out there! I wanted to work in the media as a journalist for many years, but have certainly noticed my feelings about how they handle certain topics changing as I’ve gotten older, and not always for the better…

What did you learn from the portrayal of societal pressures such as poverty and communities?

One of the things I loved most about this book is how brilliantly I felt Thomas handles these often very powerful weighty themes and elements but in a very subtle way that makes them feel relatable. Starr’s family unit gives her a sense of community that she cannot find in school, and school allows her different experiences, especially her boyfriend. The striking thing for me was that part of her character arc and development is that she feels the need to keep these separate, and how people react to her once the two personas start to come together. The portrayal of Garden Heights is so rich and well fleshed out and explores gang culture, violence and poverty, and opened my eyes very strongly to the idea that these often have more depth than I first thought.

Get in touch with your thoughts on this book and we’ll have section two for you on Wednesday! 😄