The Hate U Give

The Hate U Give is a bestselling young-adult novel and now a new film. The carefully nuanced novel, written in part from experience by young African-American author Angie Thomas, gives a fascinating  insight into the life of a teenager caught between two worlds: the mostly black neighbourhood where she lives and the mostly white private school she attends. The delicate balance she has achieved is destroyed when she is witness to a police shooting of a childhood friend.

This B1/B1+ level article can be used to trigger class discussion and debates around two major themes: a cultural one pertaining to racial violence and racial status today in the U.S.A and a literary one about book adaptations into movies. The resource also includes several videos, including an interview with the author.

Vocabulary:

• teenage life
• shootings, racial violence, opposite worlds
• adaptations
• used to
• adverbs that qualify adjectives

Grammar:

• • expressions of obligation
  • past/present of narration
  • present perfect simple