4.75* 
 I think this was a great first novel by Angie Thomas. I thought the subject was so relevant to what has been going on in our society today and really loved having the first person author perspective on this matter. Being a white female in a predominantly white town in the United States Midwest, I don't always see, know, or understand what minorities (specifically African Americans from inner cities) go through. I teach and have students who are African American and a few are originally from inner city situations, but it is still not even anything close to what Starr and her family go through. 
 I loved seeing the dialogue of Starr, her family and friends, compared to what she felt she had to be at the Williamson school her parents decided to send her to. The dialect also felt very real to me and I could "hear" some of students talking in the way Starr and her family/friends do in certain situations. The thoughts Starr conveyed about these different worlds was extremely interesting to me and I thought they were explained in a very clear and concise way. There were a few times where the conversations she has with her family/friends don't feel incredibly authentic though. The great conversation about where the oppression starts and where it continues to come from and what THUG Life means (according to her father) didn't feel like a conversation a parent would necessarily have with their kid - or at least not with a kid of that age. I have conversations like that now with my mom who is a retired teacher of over 30 years, but I don't think we would have had a conversation like that when I was a junior in high school... but who knows, times have changed over the 10 years since I was last in high school. Those conversations Starr has, while still bringing up great points and displaying some genuinely real and deep themes/points, don't feel authentic to me. 
 There were a few times in the middle of the book where things started to feel a little slow to me. I realize that this book is both plot and character driven, but those few times where the character driven parts come out, not much was happening and I started to feel like I was getting a little bogged down by the slowness of the plot. 
 I thought the scene towards the end where certain characters were joining in on a protest was really great and I thought it would be a powerful scene for people of Starr's age to read. So many people across the country seem to think that just because they aren't directly affected that they shouldn't have to worry about decisions and actions of others. For the youth to see someone else speaking out in a peaceful manner about something they feel strongly about is a powerful thing which I think could empower others who need to find their own voices. 
 Overall, I think the messages of this debut novel were very powerful and I will be trying to push it upon all my students to read in this upcoming school year. :)