The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

ISBN: 978-0-140-38572-4
Speak, NY, 2003 (originally published by Viking, 1967
180 pages

Plot Summary

14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis is being raised by his two older brothers after their parents were killed in a car crash. They are members of the Greasers and they and the Socs (the other gang in town) have fought each other for years. Ponyboy wishes that everyone could just get along and not judge each other for the way they dress and wear their hair. After a fight turns deadly, everyone's lives are changed forever.

Critical Evaluation

This book reads like a Louis L'Amour Western for young adults, which I think is a good thing. It's hard to believe that the author was only a teenager herself when she wrote The Outsiders, but maybe that's why she was able to portray the character of Ponyboy so realistically.

Reader's Annotation

14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis only has his brothers and friends to depend on but a series of tragic eventsthreaten his security and the courts may take him away from the love of his brothers and the only home he has known.

Author's Info

The Outsiders, S.E. Hinton's first published book was started when she was 15 and published her first year in college. She became known as "The Voice of the Youth" but suffered a 3-year writer's block. Her other books include Rumble Fish, Tex and That Was Then, This is Now. She still lives in Oklahoma (the setting for The Outsiders) with her husband and son and enjoys writing, riding horses and taking classes at the university.

Genre

realistic YA novel about gangs and violence

Curriculum Ties

Required reading at many high schools

Booktalking Ideas

1. Ponyboy and Johnny run away and hole up in an abandoned church.

2. Dally, Johnny and Ponyboy go to the movies.

Reading/Interest Level

Middle School and High School for both

Challenge Issues and Defense

underage drinking, smoking and drug use and lots of violence

Tame compared to many of the newer YA novels - and - a classic

Why I Included This Book

THE classic YA novel - it holds up surprisingly well.

Best-selling YA novel ever. Still one of the most requested books (by teens) in high school libraries.