“Concrete Rose” by Angie Thomas
Synopsis: If there’s one thing seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter knows, it’s that a real man takes care of his family. As the son of a former gang legend, Mav does that the only way he knows how: dealing for the King Lords. With this money he can help his mom, who works two jobs while his dad’s in prison.
Life’s not perfect, but with a fly girlfriend and a cousin who always has his back, Mav’s got everything under control.
Until, that is, Maverick finds out he’s a father.
Suddenly he has a baby, Seven, who depends on him for everything. But it’s not so easy to sling dope, finish school, and raise a child. So when he’s offered the chance to go straight, he takes it. In a world where he’s expected to amount to nothing, maybe Mav can prove he’s different.
When King Lord blood runs through your veins, though, you can't just walk away. Loyalty, revenge, and responsibility threaten to tear Mav apart, especially after the brutal murder of a loved one. He’ll have to figure out for himself what it really means to be a man.
Rating: 4.5
Trigger warnings: death, violence, drug use
Review: I feel like I so rarely read a YA book with a male protagonist — I’m sure they exist, they just don’t end up on my radar — but I can say undoubtedly that Maverick Carter is one of the most engaging male leads I’ve ever read, YA or not. If you’ve read “The Hate U Give,” you know Mav as an entrepreneur and Seven and Starr’s father. In this book, we get to see Maverick as a young man as he starts his journey into adulthood.
At the start of his story, Mav’s a young gang member, following in his (incarcerated) father’s footsteps. He’s planning for college - maybe - he’s got a great girlfriend, he’s got a supportive group of friends. Soon thereafter, literally everything changes. He’s been left with his infant son, he’s got to balance becoming a grown up with his old priorities, and he’s got other stressors that I’m not going to spoil here (but trust me, big stressors).
Honestly, I’m incredibly impressed with how well Mav handled all of these changes; he pretty quickly realized what he needed to do to take care of himself, of Seven, of his mom and his family, and he actually does it, for the most part. Yes, there are some stumbles along the way — but where aren’t there in the growing up process? Angie Thomas made his story totally believable, and I appreciate that she didn’t sugarcoat his story.
I have written and deleted this paragraph about 10 times because I’m afraid I’m not expressing myself appropriately or I’m going to sound either condescending or paternalistic — so if it comes out that way, please know that I’m sorry and it isn’t my intent. It’s really refreshing to see a portrayal of a sympathetic young Black man that feels actually true to life; Angie Thomas doesn’t pull any punches with describing the unsavory parts of his life, but she also made me fall a little bit in love with him. I feel like many fictional tropes of young Black men either make them out to be angels or villains, and Mav is neither; he’s just a normal guy, finding his way.
When I was pulling links for this review, I saw an interview with Angie Thomas that said Mav’s story was the last time she’d revisit Garden Heights, and I am bereft. The almost-too-believable portrayal of this neighborhood has made me readdress a lot of my internalized biases, and I really did learn a lot about culture and attitudes that are different from what I grew up with in south Alabama. To me, that’s the best part of reading — being challenged, expanding my belief system, and reflecting that in my day-to-day life. I don’t want to say that Angie Thomas’ books are an easy entry point because nothing about the stories that she tells are easy, but they are true, and they're not trauma p*rn. They are a real portrayal of a slice of life, and while there are hard moments, there is humor, and there is love.
TL;DR: A moving and thought-provoking look at what it means to grow up, even in less-than-ideal circ*mstances.
If You Liked This, Try These:
I’d recommend reading the other two books in this connected series: “The Hate U Give” (Bookshop | Kindle) and “On the Come Up” (Bookshop | Kindle)
“With the Fire on High” by Elizabeth Acevedo (Bookshop | Kindle | My Review)
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