An Out-Of-My-Comfort-Zone Buddy Read

So you may remember WAAAYYYY back in April of last year, I buddy read "Dread Nation" with Maria @ Night's Dream of Books.  She actually picked up a horror book (although it was kind of horror-lite) which is totally out of character for her.  Since then, we've been wanting to do another one and bantered around reading "The Hate U Give."  I don't read a lot of YA contemporary but I like the social-consciousness of this one.  We've finally pinned down a time and it works out great because the movie is being released on DVD soon so this may pave the way to watching it eventually.

Each week we are reading designated chapters and I'll like the schedule below.  Then we ask each other a few questions and answer them on our blog posts.  Some of these might include spoilers  but I figure lots of people have already read this so hopefully it won't be a problem for too many. Either that or maybe it's not something you want to read so it won't bother you either way.  Also, feel free to join in on the discussions and read with us if you want.

Now I feel I need to add a disclaimer.  Last time Maria and I set a schedule, she liked the book so much she read ahead.  I'm usually a one-at-a-time reader so I would have to keep from reading ahead and she totally surprised me by reading the horror book faster than I did. So below is the book, the synopsis, the reading schedule and my answers to Maria's first questions.  ENJOY!

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.

Schedule: 

Chapters 1-7 post and discussion Jamuary 18, 2019

Chapters 8-14 January 25, 2019

Chapters 15-21 February 1, 2019 

Chapters 22-26 and wrap up February 8, 2019

Questions:

 1.) Were you surprised and/or shocked when all the shootings and police brutality against African-Americans started becoming so common that the Black Lives Matter movement was founded? I had the naive impression that, thanks to the Civil Rights Movement, racism was pretty much a thing of the past. Boy, was I EVER wrong.....What are your thoughts on this?

I honestly am of the opinion that All Lives Matter but to be honest no, I'm not really surprised.  I don't think society is over racism and believe that there will always be people who inspire and practice hate.  I do think the media plays an important role in what people see and that sometimes they are to blame for continued ignorance or on the other side, the lack of information about what is really going on.  For example, drugs are rampant in my home community and just this week, there have been 4 confirmed OD's in 3 days.  However, the news and the community pushes this under the rug and the only reason I know about it is because of my job.  That's just an example of how people aren't given the complete story.  

2.) Do you think that even those whites who say they are not racists are entirely free of prejudice? Why or why not?

This might seem like a cop-out answer but I believe everyone has some sort of prejudice against someone or something.  

So there you have it.  I know this book covers some controversial topics and I refuse to turn my blog into a political tool, so take all my posts with a grain of salt and know that I love you all and believe everyone is entitled to their own thoughts and opinions!