The Hate U Give

Book Information

Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

Challenges & Bans

The book has been challenged for drug use, profanity, offensive language, and the depiction of police brutality and its perceived promotion of an anti-police agenda.

Specific Challenges*:
Katy Independent School District, Harris/Fort Bend/Waller Counties, Texas (2018): A parent’s public complaint at a school board meeting, led the Superintendent of the school district to remove the book from all school libraries in the district claiming the book was “pervasively vulgar”. Despite teachers and librarians arguing against the censorship, a student petition that gathered over 3,700 signatures to urge reinstatement, and a media uproar, he maintained the position that he was legally right to censor the book. Three months later the book was returned to the district’s high school libraries; however, it was only made available to students with parental consent.

Springfield, Missouri (2019): The book was challenged at a middle school with a complaint regarding both the book’s language and sexual content, as well as a lack of specificity in the permission slips that were sent home to parents. The book was pulled from the library to allow the school district to review the book. After, the book was returned to the shelves and a new permission slip was drafted; however, further complains were made, and the book was pulled again. Currently it appears that the school district has restricted it from being taught in the classroom or made available in libraries for grades 6-8, but was retained at the high school grade level.

Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (2019): The Fraternal Order of Police moved to have the book, which examines the issue of police brutality, removed a choice on Wando High School’s list of optional reading assignments for incoming freshmen, stating the books are “almost an indoctrination of distrust of police and we’ve got to put a stop to that.” After a reconsideration process by the school board, it was decided to retain the title on the list.

North Allegheny High School, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania (2022): Some parents announced on Facebook their plans to protest the book at the March 2022 school board meeting. At the meeting, a large presence of students, parents, and faculty came to defend it’s inclusion in class instruction. Prior to assigning the book, communication was sent to parents regarding the novel’s themes, situations, and language, as well as the school’s “commitment to addressing the content of the book in a professional and appropriate way.” Parents were given the option to opt out and read another book, but none actually did so. None of the parents who initially indicated they would protest the book at the meeting did so. The books remains part of the school’s 9th grade curriculum.

Edgerton Public School District, Pipestone County, Minnesota (2022): Parents objected to the book’s inclusion in the freshman curriculum, citing concerns over “profanity, sexual situations, drinking, and drugs”. The curriculum committee initially voted to retain the title; however, the superintendent tabled the decision until all board members read it. After reading, the school board voted 5–0 to remove it from the freshman curriculum citing “profanity and omission of the police officer’s viewpoint”.

Putnam Valley Central School District, Putnam County, New York (2022): Parents objected to “Critical Race Theory” and an alleged “anti-cop” bias after the book was added to the district’s optional summer reading list for incoming freshman. The book was retained.

St. Clair R-XIII School District, Franklin County, Missouri (2023): In response to the passage of Missouri S.B. 775, the book was removed from school libraries, fearing potential criminal penalties for school staff.

Shawnee Heights Unified School District 450, Shawnee County, Kansas (2023): This book was 1 of 5 titles in the school libraries that were challenged by parents, as well as a state senator. The superintendent decided to retain all the titles.

Collier County Public Schools, Collier County, Florida (2024): Florida HB 1069 prompted the removal of some 88 titles from school libraries in the district because board members feared they had “sexual content” that ran afoul of the statute. The district justified their position on banning the titles in a 73-page document posted to their website listing the “explicit sexual content”. This rationale for banning this title is listed as follows: “There’s talk of an affair between two adults. Teens engage in heavy petting, talk about having sex and condoms. A teen girl is described as being on birth control, and there’s discussion of teen pregnancy and the assumption that a married couple is having sex when they go to their bedroom and turn the television up loud. A woman is revealed to be a sex worker.”

*Source: Marshall University Library Banned Books webpage

Awards & Accolades

Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, Cybils Award for YA Fiction (finalist), Goodreads Choice Awards for YA Fiction, Goodreads Choice Award for Debut Author, Kirkus Prize (finalist), Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award, Audie Award for YA, Carnegie Medal, Coretta Scott King Award, Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis, Edgar Award for Best YA, Goodreads Choice Award Best of the Best, Indies Choice Award for YA Book of the Year, Los Angeles Time Book Prize for YA Novel (finalist), William C Morris Award, Michael L Printz Award, Waterstones Children’s Book Prize

Where to Purchase