Explore Angie Thomas's novel The Hate U Give, code-switching and Black English in America — and master reported speech at B2/C1 level.
Read the text carefully, then answer the comprehension questions using the dropdown menus.
Angie Thomas's novel The Hate U Give follows Starr Carter, a Black teenager who moves between two very different worlds. At Williamson, her mostly white private school, Starr feels she has to speak carefully and tone down her personality so that nobody calls her "ghetto". At home in her neighbourhood, Garden Heights, she can relax and speak the way she grew up speaking, mixing in African American English without a second thought. This constant switching between two versions of herself, often called "code-switching", is something many Black teenagers in the United States recognise from their own lives.
The novel does not shy away from serious issues. When Starr witnesses a police officer shoot her unarmed friend Khalil, she is forced to decide whether to speak out publicly, even though doing so could put her family in danger. Thomas uses Starr's experience to explore how young Black Americans balance fear, loyalty and the desire for justice.
Although the story is set in a fictional city rather than in Harlem itself, it draws on the same history of vibrant Black culture and community organising that neighbourhoods like Harlem are famous for. Thomas has said in interviews that she wanted readers to understand that Black English is not "broken" English — it is a rich, rule-governed way of speaking with its own grammar and history, deserving the same respect as any other dialect.
1 Starr feels she has to tone down her personality at , her mostly white private school.
2 The term for switching between two ways of speaking is .
3 Starr is forced to decide whether to speak out after .
4 According to the text, the novel is set .
5 Thomas says that Black English .
6 Starr's experience shows how young Black Americans have to balance .
When we report what someone said, the verb usually moves one step back into the past (the "backshift"). Choose the correct reported form for each sentence.
1 Direct: Starr said, "I feel nervous about testifying."
Reported: Starr said (that) she
nervous about testifying.
2 Direct: Khalil said, "I haven't done anything wrong."
Reported: Khalil said (that) he
anything wrong.
3 Direct: Maya said, "I will support you no matter what."
Reported: Maya said (that) she
support Starr no matter what.
4 Direct: Starr's father said, "You can trust the people who love you."
Reported: Starr's father said (that) she
trust the people who loved her.
5 Direct: DeVante said, "I saw everything from the window."
Reported: DeVante said (that) he
everything from the window.
6 Direct: Starr said, "I'm going to speak to the journalists tomorrow."
Reported: Starr said (that) she
speak to the journalists the next day.
7 Direct: The lawyer said, "You must stay calm during the interview."
Reported: The lawyer said (that) Starr
stay calm during the interview.
8 Direct: Starr's mother said, "We are proud of you."
Reported: Starr's mother said (that) they
proud of her.
Reported questions and commands need their own word order and reporting verbs — and some sentences don't need a backshift at all. Choose the correct option.
1 Direct: Starr asked her uncle, "Can you help me understand the case?"
Reported: Starr asked her uncle
he could help her understand the case.
2 Direct: The teacher said to the class, "Please read chapter five for homework."
Reported: The teacher
the class to read chapter five for homework.
3 Direct: Khalil said, "I didn't sell drugs because I wanted to."
Reported: Khalil
that he hadn't sold drugs because he wanted to.
4 Direct: Starr's mother warned her, "Don't talk to reporters without a lawyer."
Reported: Starr's mother warned her
talk to reporters without a lawyer.
5 Direct: Maya asked, "Where were you last night?"
Reported: Maya asked Starr where
been the night before.
6 Direct: The journalist asked, "What happened at the party?"
Reported: The journalist asked what
at the party.
7 Direct: DeVante promised, "I will tell the truth in court."
Reported: DeVante promised that he
the truth in court.
8 Direct: Starr's father reminded her, "The sun always rises after the storm."
Reported: Starr's father reminded her that the sun always
after the storm. (general truths usually keep the present tense)
Imagine you interviewed a classmate about growing up between two cultures or two ways of speaking — like Starr in The Hate U Give. Write 6–8 sentences reporting what they told you. Use reported speech throughout, and include at least one reported question.
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