Character relationships

Here, you can read about how Starr’s relationship with the various characters in The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas develop over time.

Starr and Khalil

Khalil is one of Starr’s childhood friends, but when the story begins she has not seen him for a long time. 

Starr’s feelings upon meeting him at the party are mixed at first. On one level she is happy to see her childhood friend again, and she also takes notice of how good he looks. However, she is also troubled because she views his fancy clothing as a sign that he has begun to deal drugs and might even have joined a gang. Her fear about Khalil dealing drugs is confirmed when she talks to him, although he tries to justify his choice to her (Chapter 1, 86%).

After Khalil is killed, Starr’s perspective on him continues to develop. At the funeral, King tries to give the impression that Khalil belonged to the King Lords gang, which worsens Starr’s opinion of him (Chapter 8, 70%). However, Khalil is redeemed later when Starr learns that King was bluffing during the funeral, and that Khalil actually turned down the offer of joining the gang. She gains even more...