Reviews with content warning for Racial slurs - Concrete Rose

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Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas

43 reviews

taliatalksbooks's review against another edition

emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas is a prequel to her book The Hate U Give, focusing on Starr’s father, Maverick as the main character. I was a little sad to not have a female main character (because I love Starr and Bri), but I think in this case, it actually worked to the story’s benefit. I really loved Mav, and watching him go through his struggles first hand was a more rewarding journey than I was expecting it to be. With most prequels, I am annoyed by the fact that we know where the characters end up, but there is a lot that Starr doesn’t know about her dad in The Hate U Give. This actually makes this prequel feel fresh and new, even though we already know the fates of the characters. I think this book also address a lot of really important social issues, that are important to understand in order to promote discussion and progress in certain areas. I think that like the other two in this series, Concrete Rose is an important read that is worth everyone’s time, regardless of age.

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demyajanayxo's review against another edition

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challenging emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

if angie thomas can’t do anything else, she will move me to tears. i loved mav in the hate u give and it’s no different here. his backstory fleshes out and develops his character so well. this book also shows the cycles of gang violence. the parallelism was done so well.

mav witnesses dre’s death and starr with khalil’s.

my chest got tight when baby khalil was introduced, since we know how his story ends. i’m grateful that concrete rose ends on a slightly positive note, because i can’t take more heartbreak.

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zombiezami's review

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challenging reflective sad tense fast-paced

3.75

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brookey8888's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow was this a good book. I’m so happy she decided to write this because maverick was probably one of if not my favorite character in the hate you give. I just really enjoyed getting his back story and to see how certain things came to be. This talks about such important topics. I really liked the characters in this especially the family. This book had me going through all the emotions. I’m so glad I finally read this one and enjoyed it. Plus the cover is gorgeous.

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rachel1's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Concrete Rose tells the story of Maverick Carter, the father of the Starr from The Hate U Give, as a seventeen-year-old. The story is not a list of everything that happens to the character before the events of The Hate U Give, as a lot of big events happen after this story takes place. If that's what you were expecting, it may disappoint you. Instead, it focuses on this one year of his life, the year that his eldest son Seven is born and the year Lisa becomes pregnant with Starr. The book shows us his family, something we never see in The Hate U Give. But what this book is really about is to shine a light on the experiences of black teenage boys in lower-income neighbourhoods and to humanise them when others will demonise them, and to depict a different side of black life than The Hate U Give. The book serves humanise gang members and shows why people get stuck in gangs and why it may often be necessary, while not shying away from the inherent violence involved. It subverts stereotypes of black teenage parents -- Maverick, instead of abandoning his son like is stereotypical, instead raises him almost on his own. Lisa, instead of being portrayed as an irresponsible slut, is intelligent and responsible and trying desperately to do what she thinks is right for her unborn daughter. While she wants to have and keep this baby rather than have an abortion or give her up for adoption, the book doesn't depict either of the other two options as bad options, nor does it judge her for choosing to keep the baby. Iesha, Seven's mother, is also given a more sympathetic portrayal than she was in The Hate U Give, depicted as a teenage mother going through post-partum depression. That was one of my biggest issues with The Hate U Give, where Iesha was depicted as a whore and a gold-digger and was only really given any sympathy towards the end. While those issues are not gotten rid of entirely, she is still depicted as a gold-digger and judged for her sexuality, the added dimension to her character is an improvement. One of my issues is that the book ended quite abruptly. I didn't expect everything to happen in this book, we know the important stuff that happens to Maverick from The Hate U Give, we don't need to see it all, but I would like to see just a little more

perhaps ending with the birth of Starr

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shoelady523's review against another edition

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reflective

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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kelly_e's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Title: Concrete Rose
Author: Angie Thomas
Series: The Hate U Give, #0
Genre: YA
Rating: 4.0
Pub Date: January 12, 2021

T H R E E • W O R D S

Authentic • Vital • Revealing

📖 S Y N O P S I S
Concrete Rose returns to Garden Heights where young Maverick Carter knows the importance of family. The son of a former gang legend, Mav does the only thing he knows: dealing for the King Lords. Mav thinks he has everything under control, that is until he finds out he is a father. When offered the opportunity to get it out, he takes it, but it isn't easy.

💭 T H O U G H T S

Another extremely powerful story from Angie Thomas! Tackling similar topics, this one follows Mav as he tries to navigate being a father, a son, a high school student, and a gang member. I really enjoyed getting to know his character more and the offering of a new perspective. It tackles pervasive stereotypes about young black men, and for me, it really humanizes the young black male experience. There is so much realness to the characters, and the pacing is spot on.

Some of the aspects I really appreciated were Mr. & Mrs. Wyatt as parental figures - they endeared themselves to me instantly. Secondly, I absolutely loved the metaphorical and symbolic nature of the title (revealed at the end), as well as, the chapter headings. Sometimes it is the little things that can be so powerful.

On a personal note, I tend to struggle with prequels that come out afterwards, and in the beginning I had trouble keeping track of the characters in relation to THUG. I'd be curious if this would have been the case it I'd read this one first. With that said, it can easily be read as a standalone, but my advice would be to read it before THUG for context.

I didn't love Concrete Rose as much as The Hate U Give, there is so denying Angie Thomas is a supremely gifted writer and I will without a doubt be picking up anything and everything she writes.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• THUG fans
• contemporary readers

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Bushes? Them things look like twigs. 'You only putting roses in this bed?'
'That's the plan. Roses need space to grow. Why you ask?'
He got greens, green beans, tomatoes, strawberries, blueberries - all kinds of fruits and vegetables out here. 'Seems like a lot of space to give something you can't eat.'
'You might be right,' he admits. 'I like to be reminded that beauty can come from much of nothing. To me that's the whole point of flowers.'"

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morganperks's review against another edition

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emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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jojo_'s review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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kthedestroyer's review against another edition

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challenging hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Okay so... I don't really have much to say about this book.
I really liked the pacing and the writing style which is probably the main reason that I really enjoyed reading it. I wasn't really expecting the whole novel to be around very convenient baby-making but okay, whatever. It was fine I guess. The story isn't something that I would normally enjoy but as I said earlier, there are other attributes to it.
The characters are enjoyable and they usually feel like real people in real-life situations. I like Thomas's representation of black people and their life in her books but still... how can no one use a condom on those streets? Like, everyone has babies at 17. And then they repeat their mistakes. Yeah, it's very convenient but that's just a minor observation.
Overall the book was good and would be great to get me out of a reading slump.

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