Book Review of Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas; review by Varshiini Ramesh

 Book Review of Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas

I would recommend this book to anyone who loved its companion book, The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas since Concrete Rose follows the flashback of Starr Carter’s dad, Maverick Carter. This book is about the flashback of Maverick Carter, Starr Carter’s dad, who is a seventeen year old high school senior in the King Lord gang while also trying to stay in school. His father, who’s now in prison, was a former “gang legend,” and Maverick followed in his dad’s footsteps to take care of his family (financially). To Maverick, a real man is a person who can take care of his family without depending on anyone else, and he takes care of his family by selling drugs and being a part of the gang like his Father. However, everything changes once Maverick becomes a dad. He has to decide whether or not he should stay in the gang to provide for his child, and how he’s going to change his habits. Seven, his baby, depends on Maverick for everything, and it’s hard for Maverick to concentrate in school, be a part of the gang, and take care of his child all at once. He misses hanging out with his friends, sleeping, and even his girlfriend, who decides to leave him after she finds out he has a child. With having the “gang vibes” in his blood, loyalty and revenge trigger Maverick’s emotions after a family member dies, and they threaten to break his existing relationships with his loved ones as well driving him apart. It’s up to Maverick to make decisions for himself as a man even though he’s young, and make sacrifices to ensure his family’s safety. As I was reading this book, the author, Angie Thomas, took me into Maverick’s shoes through his entire journey, and I was able to empathetically understand what he was going through. I think that’s the main reason why this book was a very heartwarming book, even though it took many struggles to reach a happy ending. Again, I would recommend this book to everyone because it makes you understand that even one small incident can be life changing, and it’s up to us to figure out who we are even after everything has changed. The entire book focuses on Maverick’s decisions, and how the authority figures in his life have a huge impact on his decisions. The plot has many twists and turns that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Navigating who you want to be after a life changing circumstance is still a problem in our lives today because people don’t know what to sacrifice and what decisions to make. Maverick has the same experience in this book because he has to give up certain risks to ensure the safety of his child, and he also has to try to stay in school in order for his family to depend on him. This book also does an excellent job of bringing in authority figures such as his mother, his cousin Dre, and his boss, Mr.Wyatt to comfort and push Maverick to great lengths even if he has a child to take care of. The author also does a great job of bringing the characters to life by detailing every small event. Finally, I really enjoyed reading this book due to how Maverick’s character was developed. I would rate this book a 9/10.