But they both prioritize tropes among teens of color such as teen pregnancy in their novels. Maverick also finds himself alone in advocating for Dre, who falls out of the media cycle as another Black gang member murder victim unlike Starr who gets unwanted attention with the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement spotlighting Khalil’s murder by police.Īngie Thomas and fellow multicultural young adult author Elizabeth Acevedo seem to be the top best-selling authors in the subgenre as evidenced in what literary agents say in Twitter pitch parties. With Starr’s situation, we know the killer while Maverick is carrying the guilt of not knowing the killer. The intersection continues with Maverick witnessing the aftermath of Dre’s murder similar to Starr witnessing the actual murder of her friend Khalil by a police officer. The author even thanks actor Russell Hornsby, who plays adult Maverick in The Hate U Give film, at the end for inspiring Maverick’s teenage story. It’s a portrait of a family who has become familiar in pages and onscreen. He has to decide if selling drugs and killing Dre’s killer is worth it when he finds out he will be a father for the second time.Īs a loyal reader to Angie Thomas’ work, this novel becomes more entertaining when piecing together the timeline of seeing where Seven, Lisa, Uncle Carlos, and Starr intersect in Maverick’s life. As he follows leads, Maverick is having a hard time supporting his son who he names Seven, the number he calls perfect. Maverick is the first responder and vows to avenge his cousin’s murder.

Then that protection disappears when Dre is shot dead in his car. Maverick is desperate for money, but he knows his cousin is looking out for him.

As the big brother figure, Dre advises Maverick to get a real job at the mom-and-pops grocery instead of selling drugs. Dre is the main person Maverick can depend on since he’s also a father and preparing to marry his baby’s mother. Maverick learns he is the father, which creates a hardship for him and his single mother and a rift between him and King.

But he’s keeping a secret from Lisa: He may be the father of King’s son. Maverick is making amends with his girlfriend, Lisa, after a brief breakup and hanging out with his friends like gang members King and cousin Dre. This prequel focuses on 17-year-old Maverick and his foray into unplanned parenthood amid a contentious relationship with the gang King Lords.

Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas crafts the origin story of the Carter patriarch from her successful debut The Hate U Give and shows the parallels of Maverick’s teenage life in the late 1990s with his daughter Starr’s contemporary experience.

Concrete rose paperback