By Haroula Barbounis

One of the most popular and influential books this year and last year has been Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give, which has recently turned into a movie starring Amandla Stenberg. It touches on many significant issues we have today, such as racism and police brutality. A best-seller, it talks about a girl named Starr Carter who copes with many hardships in her life, such as fitting in at her rich white prep school and balancing that with her life at home in her low-income black neighborhood. This alone is relatable in everyday life, when trying to balance two completely different lives. She witnesses her best friend from childhood get shot by a police officer, even though her friend was unarmed. As Starr deals with the emotional trauma, she must decide if she will speak out about her friend’s undeserved death.