Angie Thomas is the author of the bestseller The Hate U Give, a novel for young adults that was inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement and which tells the story of Starr Carter, a 16-year-old African American girl who is drawn to activism after witnessing the police shooting of a childhood friend. Published in 2017, the book has been on the New York Times young adult bestseller list for 96 weeks and has won many awards, including children’s book of the year at the British book awards, and the Waterstones children’s book prize for 2018. Writer Nikesh Shukla described it as “one of the most important books of 2017” and it has also recently been made into a successful film.
Thomas grew up in Jackson, Mississippi, and she was the first black student to graduate in creative writing from the city’s Belhaven University. Her second book On the Come Up, published in February, is a love letter to hip-hop and tells the story of Bri, a teenager who dreams of becoming the greatest rapper of all time. Thomas was a rapper as a teenager.
We are offering readers the chance to put a question to the award-winning author: submit them in the comments section below, email us at review@observer.co.uk, or tweet @ObsNewReview by 10am on Monday 14 January. Here are some Angie Thomas quotes to inspire you...
“I grew up in a neighbourhood called Georgetown, which is the ’hood...I would hear gunshots at night… but one thing I did love about my neighbourhood growing up was the sense of community.”
“When I couldn’t find myself in books, I found myself in the rhymes written by MCs who looked like me and shared my experiences.”
“I’ve always seen writing as a form of activism. If nothing else, books give us a glimpse into lives that we may not have known about before; they can promote empathy.”
“Freedom of speech isn’t necessarily free, especially when you’re young and black.”
“Every time a black girl comes up to me and says, ‘Thank you. It’s the first time I’ve seen myself in a book like this’, that’s better than hitting the New York Times bestseller list.”
“Hashtags are nice, but I would ask people to put in some work! You know, organise! Speak out! Do things! Be active about it! Don’t just put that hashtag and ignore it. We can make change happen if we actually speak out and do things and work…”
