Angie Thomas | |
|---|---|
 Thomas in 2019 | |
| Born | September 20, 1988 Jackson, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Language | English |
| Education | Belhaven University (BFA) |
| Genre | Young Adult Fiction, Middle Grade |
| Notable works | The Hate U Give (2017) On the Come Up (2019) |
| Website | |
| www | |
Angie Thomas (born September 20, 1988) is an American young adult author, best known for writing The Hate U Give (2017). Her second young adult novel, On the Come Up , was released on February 25, 2019.
Angie Thomas was born on September 20, 1988, in Jackson, Mississippi where she was raised. [1] [2]
Thomas was subjected to multiple instances of gun violence at a young age. She grew up near the home of assassinated civil rights activist Medgar Evers, stating that her mother heard the gunshot that had killed him. [3] When she was six years old, Thomas witnessed a shootout.
In an interview with The Guardian , she recounted how her mother took her to the library the following day to show her that "there was more to the world than what [Thomas] saw that day". This inspired her to take up writing. [4]
In her adolescence, Thomas shared her skills as a rapper, although her career in music was short-lived. She was, however, the subject of an article in Right On! magazine. [5] [6] Thomas went on to obtain a Bachelor of Fine Arts [7] from Belhaven University. [8] She was the first black teenager to graduate from her creative writing course. [8]
Thomas' initial intention was to write fantasy and middle grade novels; however, she was worried that her stories would not matter. While querying her first manuscript, she began another that would soon turn out to be her first novel, The Hate U Give . [9] While she was a college student, one of her professors suggested that her experiences were unique and that her writing could give a voice to those who had been silenced and whose stories had not been told. [3] During this time, Thomas also heard about the shooting of Oscar Grant on the news. [4] This story, compounded by the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Tamir Rice, Michael Brown, and Sandra Bland, was a major influence on the novel. [4]
Thomas cites Tupac Shakur as inspiration for her writing. She has felt a wide range of emotions when listening to his music, and wanted to achieve a similar effect as a writer, saying, "I want to make you think at times; I want to make you laugh at times; I want to make you cry at times – so he was an influence in that way." Thomas understands that to mean, "that what society feeds into youth has a way of coming back and affecting us all." [10]
In an interview with The Daily Telegraph , Thomas stated that she aims to "show truth and tear down stereotypes" in her writing, and further says that it is important for the white community to listen to the grievances of the Black Lives Matter movement. After its publication, The Hate U Give was adapted into a 2018 film of the same name by Fox 2000, starring Amandla Stenberg. [8] [5]
In an interview with Publishers Weekly , Thomas gives insight on her role as an activist: "I've always seen writing as a form of activism. If nothing else, books give us a glimpse into lives that we may not have known about before; they can promote empathy. There is the movement Black Lives Matter and the organization Black Lives Matter, and I respect what both are doing. I know [The Hate U Give] is an 'issue' book, but I didn't necessarily want it to be that way... I wanted to make something that is so political seem personal. While I wanted Khalil to represent these young men who lose their lives and are quickly labeled thugs, I wanted [the plot of the book] to be its own thing. I didn't want to disrespect anyone's family, anyone's memory." [11]
The Hate U Give, originally written as a short story, debuted at number one on the New York Times Best Seller list for young adult hardcover books within the first week of its release in 2017. [3] The Hate U Give was written, as Thomas says, to bring light to the controversial issue of police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement. [3] The book's plot follows a teenage girl, Starr Carter, and how her life is impacted by the death of her friend, Khalil, an unarmed black teen shot by a white police officer. The Hate U Give deals with the effect of police brutality on the communities of those around the victim.
In 2018, the Katy Independent School District in Katy, Texas, removed the book from its shelves after complaints over profanity, [12] and a South Carolina police union requested the book's removal from a school's summer reading list, because of what the union considered "almost an indoctrination of distrust of police." [13]
On the Come Up was released in February 2019. Thomas wrote the book so she could discuss the costs tolled on minorities and women when they do speak-up. [14] The book tells the story of a teen rapper who becomes a viral sensation and the way that this distorts and changes who she is. It takes place in the same fictional universe as The Hate U Give.
On the Come Up was a New York Times bestseller. [15] [16] Kirkus Reviews named it one of the best young adult novels of 2019. [15]
Concrete Rose is a prequel to The Hate U Give and was released on January 12, 2021, in the US and the UK. The book tells the story of Starr's father Maverick Carter. [17]
The book was a New York Times and IndieBound bestseller. [18] Kirkus Reviews named it one of the best young adult novels of 2021. [18]
Thomas wrote a young adult novel Blackout, released in June 2021, which she co-authored with Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon. The book follows six interlinked stories about Black teen love during a power outage in New York City. [19]
She wrote the middle school novel, Nic Blake and the Remarkables. [20] [21]
In 2015, Thomas received We Need Diverse Books' Walter Grant, [22] which grants $2,000 to "unpublished authors or illustrators from diverse backgrounds working on children’s or young adult literature projects" [23]
The Junior Library Guild has selected the book and audiobook editions of The Hate U Give , [24] [25] On the Come Up , [26] [27] and Concrete Rose [28] [29] for their collection.
The Hate U Give was a number one New York Times bestseller and IndieBound besteller. [15] The Horn Book Magazine , [30] Kirkus Reviews , [31] Publishers Weekly , [32] and Shelf Awareness , [33] among others, named it one of the best young adult novels of 2017. Booklist named it one of the best books of the year regardless of genre. [34]
On the Come Up was a New York Times bestseller. [15] The Horn Book Magazine [30] and Kirkus Reviews [15] named it one of the best young adult novels of 2019. Booklist included it on their 2019 "Top 10 Arts Books for Youth" list. [35]
Concrete Rose was a New York Times and IndieBound bestseller. [18] Kirkus Reviews named it one of the best young adult novels of 2021. [18]
Martha Elizabeth "Libba" Bray is an American writer of young adult novels including the Gemma Doyle Trilogy, Going Bovine, and The Diviners.
Deborah Hopkinson is an American writer of over seventy children's books, primarily historical fiction, nonfiction and picture books.
Adam Gidwitz is an American author of children's books, best known for A Tale Dark and Grimm (2010), In a Glass Grimmly (2012), and The Grimm Conclusion (2013). He received a 2017 Newbery Honor for The Inquisitor’s Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog (2016). In 2021, his book A Tale Dark and Grimm was adapted into an animated miniseries on Netflix.
Candace Groth Fleming is an American writer of children's books, both fiction and non-fiction. She is the author of more than twenty books for children and young adults, including the Los Angeles Times Book Prize-honored The Family Romanov and the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award-winning biography, The Lincolns, among others.
Kwame Alexander is American poet, educator, publisher, Emmy® Award-winning producer, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of 40 books, including poetry, memoir, and children's fiction. His mission is to change the world, one word at a time.
Amie Kaufman is an Australian author. She has authored New York Times bestselling and internationally bestselling science fiction and fantasy for young adults. She is known for the Starbound Trilogy and Unearthed, which she co-authored with Meagan Spooner; for her series The Illuminae Files, co-authored with Jay Kristoff; and for her solo series, Elementals. Her books have been published in over 35 countries.
Katherine Ingrid Kellgren or Kjellgren was an American actress, known for her narration of audiobooks.
The Hate U Give is a 2017 young adult novel by Angie Thomas. It is Thomas's debut novel, expanded from a short story she wrote in college in reaction to the police shooting of Oscar Grant. The book is narrated by Starr Carter, a 16-year-old African-American girl from a poor neighborhood who attends an elite private school in a predominantly white, affluent part of the city. Starr becomes entangled in a national news story after she witnesses a white police officer shoot and kill her childhood friend, Khalil. She speaks up about the shooting in increasingly public ways, and social tensions culminate in a riot after a grand jury decides not to indict the police officer for the shooting.
Elizabeth Acevedo is a Dominican-American poet and author. In September 2022, the Poetry Foundation named her the year's Young People's Poet Laureate.
Bahni Turpin is an American audiobook narrator and stage and screen actor based out of Los Angeles. Her audiobook career includes some of the most popular and critically-acclaimed books in recent years, including The Help and The Hate U Give. She has won 9 Audie Awards, including Audiobook of the Year for Children of Blood and Bone; 14 Earphone Awards; and 2 Odyssey Awards. Turpin has also earned a place on AudioFile magazine's list of Golden Voice Narrators, and in 2016, she was named Audible's Narrator of the Year. In 2018, Audible inducted her into the Narrator Hall of Fame.
Anna-Marie McLemore is a Mexican-American author of young adult fiction magical realism, best known for their Stonewall Honor-winning novel When the Moon Was Ours, Wild Beauty, and The Weight of Feathers.
The Poet X, published March 6, 2018 by HarperTeen, is a young adult novel by Elizabeth Acevedo. Fifteen-year-old Xiomara, also known as "X" or "Xio," works through the tension and conflict in her family by writing poetry. The book, a New York Times bestseller, was well received and won multiple awards at the 2019 Youth Media Awards.
The Inquisitor's Tale: Or, The Three Magical Children and Their Holy Dog is a young adult novel written by Adam Gidwitz and illuminated by Hatem Aly, published by Dutton Children's Books in 2016. It is set in medieval France and describes how three magical children meet each other and become outlaws. It was named a Newbery Honor book in 2017.
On the Come Up, published on February 5, 2019, by Balzer + Bray, is a young adult novel by Angie Thomas. It tells the story of Bri, a sixteen-year old rapper hoping to fill the shoes of her father and "make it" as an underground hip-hop legend. Overnight, Bri becomes an internet sensation after posting a rap hit which sparks controversy. As Bri defeats the odds to "make it" she battles controversy to achieve her dreams. It is set in the same universe as Thomas' first book The Hate U Give.
Dhonielle Clayton is an American author and chief operating officer of We Need Diverse Books. She has written multiple book series, including The Belles (2018-2023). She also collaborated with Tiffany D. Jackson, Angie Thomas, Nic Stone, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon to write Blackout (2021).
They Called Us Enemy is a 2019 graphic novel that is a collaboration by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker. It is about his experiences during the internment of Japanese Americans in World War II. It is published by Top Shelf Productions.
Blackout is a young adult novel written by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon. The book contains six interlinked stories about Black teen love during a power outage in New York City. The book was released on June 22, 2021.
The Belles is a dystopian young adult novel series by Dhonielle Clayton, consisting of three books: The Belles (2018), The Everlasting Rose (2019) and The Beauty Trials (2023). The first two books are Junior Library Guild selections.
Concrete Rose is a young adult novel by Angie Thomas, published January 12, 2021, by Balzer + Bray.
Jeff Zentner is an author of several young adult novels including The Serpent King and In The Wild Light. His adult novel Colton Gentry’s Third Act is due to be released April 30th, 2024.
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