Review: Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas
I am now, tragically, caught up on Angie Thomas books.
Concrete Rose is the prequel to The Hate U Give, Thomas' first novel. This book follows Maverick, Starr's father, as he starts his senior year of high school, finds out about his three-month-old son, and is told his girlfriend is pregnant. In addition to all of this, Maverick has to process the death of someone close to him, figure out his new family dynamics, and decide who he wants to be as a person.
Thomas is truly a master of a conversational book. All of her main characters, including Maverick, feel like you are being told their life story. They legitimately almost feel biographical. I was particularly interested in the way this book talks about masculinity. Thomas presents toxic parts of masculinity and, throughout the book, shows the reader the negative consequences of those traits. She presents the ideal man Maverick wants to be with so much compassion. We get to see so many positives of masculinity when men are able to make choices outside the toxic framework presented to most men.
One thing that struck me while I was reading is that I would be deep into a political fantasy or science-fiction written by Thomas. I think she would be top-notch at anything vaguely court intrigue. I know she is writing a middle-grade fantasy, and I will certainly read that, but I would go bananas if she wrote a high drama YA or adult fantasy.
This book, like all of her previous books, played my emotions like a fiddle. I cried three times. Angie Thomas is truly excellent at getting you so invested in a story, and so deeply wrapped up in someone's mind, that you cannot help but feel deeply.
I was especially impressed by the plotting of this book. The story was so well executed; it was all building to such an intentional ending. Obviously, the reader knows what happens to Maverick; Starr tells the reader about her father in The Hate U Give. That prior knowledge added such an interesting extra layer to this story. I kept trying to figure out what exactly was going to happen to lead the plot towards the events I knew happened in Maverick's life, I eventually gave up on guessing and just committed to flying through the end of the book, so I could just see what was happening. I also really liked the choice Thomas made regarding the one big part of Maverick's story that the book does not show. The reader has enough pieces to be able to figure out what will happen between this book's end and the start of The Hate U Give, but it totally seemed like the correct choice to leave that open.
Obviously, I would recommend this book. Angie Thomas is a genius. I would especially recommend this book to people who want YA contemporary that portrays teen parenthood, poverty, and violence. I would also recommend it to people who just want an incredibly engaging narrator, an emotional story (excellent highs and lows), and a well-plotted story that feels really grounded.
