“The Hate U Give” Author Angie Thomas is Feb. 11 University Forum Speaker

Tue, 02/11/2020 - 04:54pm | By: David Tisdale

Mississippi’s proud tradition of producing great writers now includes award-winning novelist Angie Thomas, who will share her thoughts on the big splash she’s made in the literary world at the first University of Southern Mississippi (USM) University Forum program of the spring 2020 semester.

Thomas, a writer of young adult fiction and recipient of the 2018 William C. Morris Award and the 2018 Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, will present “The Hate U Give: Finding Your Activism” Tuesday, Feb. 11 at 6:30 p.m. at the Thad Cochran Center Ballrooms on the USM Hattiesburg campus. This free program is open to the public.

Thomas’s debut novel, The Hate U Give, has spent more than two years on the New York Times young adult bestseller list.  In 2018, a film adaption of The Hate U Give starring Amandla Stenberg was a blockbuster success. Thomas’ second novel, On the Come Up, was published in February 2019 and is already slated to be adapted into a film.

A former teen rapper, Thomas places authenticity, visibility, and the politics of finding one’s voice at the center of her work.

“Two years ago, Angie Thomas was slated to speak at the University Forum and had to cancel due to illness, so we are very excited that she is finally coming to Southern Miss,” said Dr. Andrew Haley, director of University Forum and an associate professor of history. “Through her amazing works of fiction, she has helped hundreds of thousands of young readers to find their voices and challenge injustice.”

University Forum is presented by the Southern Miss Honors College. For questions about University Forum, email forumFREEMississippi; or visit https://www.usm.edu/honors/about-university-forum.php.