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#7 | February 16 | Something I learned about society

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#7 | February 16 | Something I learned about society

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Wow...the ending of this book was filled with so much action! The verdict finally came out and the jury decided not to indict officer one-fifteen. Starr, Seven, DeVante, and Chris hear about this news on the radio. The radio! Obviously they were very upset by this decision, especially Starr. It caused such an anger in her that she wanted to riot! Not a good idea...

Starr and the gang head to Garden Heights to the riots. The streets are swarmed with people shouting, chanting, and destroying police cars. They go further down the street and see Ms. Ofrah standing on a car in the middle of an intersection with a mega phone saying things along the lines of "justice for Khalil." Ms. Ofrah spots Starr in the crowd and gives her the megaphone...this is Starr's chance to finally speak up for Khalil. And she does! Well...until the police throw tear gas at her. But to be fair, the police did warn her and told her to move and she didn't listen. It doesn't stop there though...Starr throws the tear gas BACK at the police. This is where it really goes downhill...

After the tear gas gets thrown, people go crazy. They're burning down building after building, unless it has a sign that says "black owned" on it. It's starting to get really dangerous and very hard to breath in the smoke. They go to Maverick's store to catch their breath, but just as they do King and his gang start the store on fire! This scene really kept me on the edge of my seat not knowing what was going to happen.

In the conclusion of this book I learned that society will go to extreme measures if something upsets them. In the book, the Garden Heights society didn't like the final verdict, so they rioted. Even though this probably wasn't the best idea, they wanted the other people to know that they weren't happy. It just proves that people will do anything when they're upset enough. Which can be good or bad. In this book, I see both ways.

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#6 | February 11 | My least favorite character

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#6 | February 11 | My least favorite character

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So much happened in just three chapters! Everything from fights, parties, and gang drama. It's been eight weeks since Khalil's death, and Starr's friends finally figure out that she did know Khalil after all. At school one day, Hailey shows Starr a picture of them with Khalil when they were little. She connects the dots and now knows about Starr's lie....

Throughout the book I've never really been a big fan of Hailey, but this reading really made me dislike her. She said some awful things about Khalil to Starr, which she definitely could have kept to herself. "Yes, get over it! He was probably gonna end up dead anyway" (Thomas 341). WHAT. When she said this I couldn't believe it. It got worse though...she went on saying that the cop did everyone a favor! She was really asking for it...Starr had enough and hit her across the face, which escalated into a big fight that resulted in suspension.

The reading goes on with Seven's grad/birthday party and then ends with some King Lord issues. Iesha shows up to Seven's party uninvited, and it gets heated between the two of them. I feel bad for Seven, he tries so hard to care for both of his families and Iesha just doesn't care. The last section of this reading was about DeVante being jumped and held by King. Iesha somewhat redeemed herself here, when she helped DeVante escape. I think she means well, but King is a very bad influence on her. I hope that by the end she realizes that!

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#5 | February 8 | Element of literature - setting

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#5 | February 8 | Element of literature - setting

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It's been five weeks since Khalil's death, and Starr's publicity is growing. She has a big interview on national television coming up, and also has to speak to the grand jury! There's lots of pressure on Starr, because the outcome of Khalil's cased could be based off what she says. The interview starts out pretty good....until she goes into too much detail. She says too much about Khalil's personal life, and too much about King! This could be bad....

In this reading, Starr goes to prom! She goes with Chris, but he seems...off...he's not talking to Starr and giving her the cold shoulder. It turns out he's upset because Starr was the witness of Khalil's death and she didn't tell him. He finds out just by looking at the back of her from the interview! I think it's kind of cute that he knows her that well...but sad that just by based on the setting Starr is in, she has to act completely different. The people in Williamson are so different from the people in Garden Heights, from they way they talk to the way they dance, which Starr seems to notice at prom.

The Carter's are finally moving!! The setting in Garden Heights has gotten so bad that they bought a house somewhat close to Carlos's. The Carter family goes to take a look at the new potential home, and are shocked by how quiet the neighborhood is and how many people are outside. It makes me sad that they were so used to the setting in Garden Heights where they were scared to be outside because of all the gunshots and riots. I'm really happy that they decided to move and get to enjoy a new setting!

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#4 | February 3rd | My favorite character

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#4 | February 3rd | My favorite character

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Throughout the book so far I've always liked Starr's uncle Carlos, but this reading really finalized that he's my favorite character. Carlos has always been there for Starr growing up, playing the role as her dad while Maverick was in jail. Not only that, he's been there for the Carter family throughout the investigation and always has a room for them to stay if they need it. In these three chapters, Carlos really stood out to me. He's giving DeVante a place to stay, even though he knows that it could put his family in danger. He's doing it out of the kindness of his heart and genuinely wants to help him get out of the King Lord gang. That's not all though. When Starr was at Maya's house, an interview with one-fifteen's dad was on TV. During the interview he says that his son has been attacked verbally and physically by other cops....this is when Starr realized that Carlos was the one to beat up one-fifteen, and was the reason he had bruised knuckles. When Starr asked Carlos about it, he said he did it to protect her, and because he pointed a gun at her. Starr was surprised to hear this, because Carlos loves his job. "But I love you more. You're the reason I became a cop, baby girl" (Thomas 255). Isn't that cute!! This is was the icing on the cake for me, because Carlos would genuinely do anything for his family, and I love that. I hope that it works out in the end for Carlos and nothing bad happens to him!!

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In these four chapters I learned a lot about the gangs. The King Lords, and the GD's (Garden Disciples). The riots are getting really bad in Garden Heights, and it's gotten to a point where it's getting dangerous to even be outside. Starr and Seven aren't supposed to leave, but they go and play basketball at the park without their parents knowing. While there, a couple of GD's come up to them and try to steal from them. Before they can get away with it, DeVante, a King Lord, comes and helps them. Maverick then pulls up to the park and is REALLY mad....like really mad. He screams at them to get in the car and they go to home to a VERY upset mother. She yells at them and takes their phones away for a punishment. When Starr walks into school one morning, it's really quiet and people are whispering. Since she had her phone taken away, she didn't see the group text that says students are protesting for Khalil during first period. Starr was shocked to figure out that the only reason people were protesting was to get out of class...I was shocked too. Using someone's death to get out of class is so wrong and disrespectful!! Hailey and Maya join the protest, but Chris stays. This makes me question Starr's "friends." At Maverick's shop one day, DeVante comes in and tells him that he wants out of the King Lord gang. Maverick says that he will help him, and gives him a job at the shop, and invites him to stay with his family until they get it figured out. This shocked me because this puts a big target on the Carter family because King is looking for DeVante and this can put them in danger. Lastly, Starr meets with Ms. Ofrah at Just Us for Justice. What they find out is what shocked me the most...they find out that what one-fifteen thought was a gun...was a hairbrush!! I definitely wasn't expecting that. I can still see where the officer is coming from, but that evidence can change a lot!! I'm very eager to see how the case turns out.

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#2 | January 27th | Something that made me mad

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#2 | January 27th | Something that made me mad

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So much has happened in these three chapters! Starr goes into the police station to get questioned about what happened the night Khalil got shot. Starr tells the two detectives everything she knows, without having them put words into her mouth. I think the detectives weren't being too bad...they just want to know exactly what happened, which can come off as being a little pushy, which is what I think Starr and her mom interpreted. Then she has to go back to school like nothing happened! I don't know how she does it...I definitely could not keep that trauma from my friends. At school, Hailey, Starr, and Maya are in gym class, watching the other girls flirt and play basketball with the boys. They eventually join the game and are having a good time, until Hailey says this to Starr: "Hustle! Pretend the ball is some fried chicken. Bet you'll stay on it then" (Thomas 111). This made me mad because who says that to a friend?? Even though she said it as a joke, Starr got insulted, and I don't blame her. It was in front of all the boys too!! Like why?? The last event that happened in this reading was Khalil's funeral. Lots of people were there, and Starr got a front row seat. In the middle of the service, King and his gang came to put a bandana on Khalil's body, meaning he was King Lord. This makes Ms. Rosalie, Khalil's grandma, very upset. She gets up and throws the bandana back and King, which causes him and his wife to call her some very mean names. This is another part that made me mad because his wife called her an old hag, and King called her a bitch! Who says that to an old lady? These three chapters had lots of emotion and am excited to see what happens next!

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So far I am enjoying reading this book. I like how deeply connected the family is, and how they protect each other. A sixteen year old black teenager, Starr Carter, witnesses her childhood best friend, Khalil, get killed by a cop when they get pulled over. In these first five chapters it shows how Starr is dealing with the trauma from this, and how she has to juggle her two lives. One in her black "hood" neighborhood where she lives, and the other in her rich white school. From the killing and boys and friends, Starr has a lot on her plate. There are some things I don't completely agree with, like how Starr's whole family thinks that the cop is all in the wrong and Khalil is completely innocent. I think they are both in the wrong. Khalil should have just listened to the cop, but that didn't give the cop the right to just shoot him. After Khalil's death, social media was saying things like "f#@! the police, stuff like that" (Thomas 34). I don't agree with this because although that one cop shouldn't have shot Khalil, it's not every single police officer's fault. I'm excited to read more and see where this takes the Carter family.