Thomas’s superpower is the ability to write tough subjects joyfully. It shines in her latest book.
Angie Thomas’s first book, The Hate U Give, recently celebrated its 100th consecutive week at No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list. It was a runaway and well-deserved success, a YA novel that handled the police shooting of an unarmed black teen with equal parts sincerity and warmth.
Thomas’s second book — On the Come Up, out this week — is well on its way to becoming just such a runaway success. It’s wise and witty, and it boasts Thomas’s characteristic ability to handle serious questions of systemic racism with a light and even joyous touch.
On the Come Up ’s main character is 16-year-old Brianna, or Bri, a committed hip-hop head and aspiring rapper. Bri dreams of living up to the example of her dead father, an acclaimed underground rapper who was on the cusp of mainstream fame when he was killed by a gang.
She also dreams of providing for her family, who are only just barely able to get by on her mother’s church secretary salary and the wages her older brother Trey is able to scrape together at the local pizza place. (Trey, the family golden boy, is college-educated, and his inability to find good work despite his degree forms one of On the Come Up ’s most affecting subplots.
