Lists

11 THE HATE U GIVE Quotes that Need to Be in the Movie

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Deepali Agarwal

Staff Writer

Deepali Agarwal has a Master’s in literary linguistics, which means that every person she’s ever known has, at some point, asked her to ‘edit a thing’ for them-- ‘just see if it reads okay?’ She doesn’t mind, because she believes that the world can be fixed one oxford comma at a time. Deepali lives in Delhi, the capital of India, where cows are sacred, but authors and poets exist and write brilliant things. She works as an editor with OUP India’s School ELT division, where she moves apostrophes, looks up pictures of cats, and talks about children’s books for eight hours. The rest of her day is spent reading, thinking about Parks and Recreation, and wondering if there exist jobs for English majors that pay more than peanuts. Twitter: @DeepaliAgarwal_

View All posts by Deepali Agarwal

If you’ve been following us here at Book Riot even a little, you’ll have a fair idea of just how in love we are with Angie Thomas’s YA debut novel, The Hate U Give. The book follows Starr Carter, a 16-year-old black girl whose world changes after she witnesses her best friend being shot. The book hit the New York Times Bestseller List, inspired hundreds of young activists, and believe it or not, was banned by some authorities and institutions across the U.S.

11 THE HATE U GIVE quotes that need to be in the movie. THE HATE U GIVE | THE HATE U GIVE quotes | YA book quotes | Quotes by Angie Thomas | Angie Thomas quotes

If you haven’t has a chance to pick this beautiful, heartbreaking marvel of a book, you have around a month before we are blessed with the movie adaptation, starring Amandla Stenberg, KJ Apa, Issa Rae, and Regina Hall. The book has everything, from profound words about black activism and police brutality to cozy, quippy family banter. I have no doubt the movie will be a gorgeous inspiring tearjerker, and here are some of my favourite The Hate U Give quotes I’d love to see come to life.

  1. Funny how it works with white kids though. It’s dope to be black until it’s hard to be black.
  2. What’s the point of having a voice if you’re gonna be silent in those moments you shouldn’t be?
  3. Sometimes you can do everything right and things will still go wrong. The key is to never stop doing right.
  4. You can destroy wood and brick, but you can’t destroy a movement.
  5. Your voices matter, your dreams matter, your lives matter. Be the roses that grow in the concrete.
  6. ‘Brave doesn’t mean you’re not scared, Starr,’ she says. ‘It means you go on even though you’re scared. And you’re doing that.’
  7. I’ll never forget. I’ll never give up. I’ll never be quiet. I promise.
  8. At an early age I learned that people make mistakes, and you have to decide if their mistakes are bigger than your love for them.
  9. My nana likes to say that spring brings love. Spring in Garden Heights doesn’t always bring love, but it promises babies in the winter.
  10. “What is Tumblr anyway? Is it like Facebook?”
    “No, and you’re forbidden to get one. No parents allowed. You guys already took over Facebook.”
  11. It’s also about Oscar.
    Aiyana.
    Trayvon.
    Rekia.
    Michael.
    Eric.
    Tamir.
    John.
    Ezell.
    Sandra.
    Freddie.
    Alton.
    Philando.
    It’s even about that little boy in 1955 who nobody recognized at first—Emmett.

If you’re still not sold on Angie Thomas’s magic:

What are your favorite The Hate U Give quotes? Oh, and if you’re here because you loved the book as much as we did, we gotcha. Here’s a list of brilliant books if you’re looking for read-alikes!