Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
The prequel to The Hate U Give follows Maverick Carter finding out he is a father. Seventeen years before Starr Carter's debut, her father, Man, deals with grief, fatherhood and the difficulties of parenting, expectations, and finding who he really is. This is a wonderful story about what it means to be a black man in American in the 1990s.
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TW: gang violence, gun violence, drug dealing, racism
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This book was really well done. I am convinced that Angie Thomas can do no wrong. I also want to say, please do not compare this to her debut novel, The Hate U Give (2017). To me, that book is untouchable; a true masterpiece. Concrete Rose is a wonderful story, but it is not the same as THUG. I think comparing the two is doing a disservice to both titles and to Angie. If you compare the two, you are going to miss out on the nuances of Concrete Rose. This book excels in both the writing, character development, and the plot. Thomas writes in a way that feels so accurate, so realisitc that I felt like I was reading Mav's diary. I did not just feel like a bystander watching the story unfold, I felt like I was Mav seeing and experienceing everything all at once. The dialogue and the style is so perfect. It reads exactly how a teenager would talk in the 1990's, which is something adult authors can never fully get right. Thomas manages to capture every single character's personalities in what they say and how Mav percieves them. It adds weight to the story that is great to see. You can see evrey side character develop as Mav sees them develop, which is just a testament to Thomas's writing. This book says so much about what it means to be a black man, and it breaks down so many stereotypes that we see today. I am not a black man, so I will not speak to the representation any more than I liked these ideas and the way they are presented. I loved seeing the little easter eggs from THUG, and also from Nic Stone's work and Becki Albertalli's. Everything about this book is done with such precision, attention to detail, and care. It connects so well with the events in THUG. I love seeing how Mav became Mav, becasue he was one of my favorite characters from THUG. Whether or not you have read THUG, you can read this book. I highly recommend picking it up. Angie Thomas is a true talent, and she did not disappoint with this prequel.