An American Classic

Information:

Title: The Outsiders
Author: S.E. Hinton
Publisher: Penguin Books
Parent Company: Pearson




Summary of Content:

This novel tells the story of 14-year old Ponyboy Curtis and his struggles growing up in a society where he feels like an "outsider". Ponyboy and his older brothers, Darry and Sodapop, have recently lost their parents in a car accident and live on their own. These three boys, along with friends Johnny and Dallas, belong to a group called the "Greasers", who are from the poor side of town. The "Socs", short for socials and their rival group, live on the rich side of town. A fight between these two groups can break out at any time without any provoking from either side. One terrible night during a fight that gets way out of control, Jonny kills a Soc in order to protect Ponyboy. Ponyboy doesn't tell his brothers about the murder, and Johnny seeks help from Dally in order to avoid being arrested. Dally gives them $50 and tells them to leave town until he goes to find them. They hide out in an abandoned church, color and cut their hair to disguise themselves, and pass the time by playing cards and reading. Dally shows up after a week, takes them to a local Dairy Queen to buy them food, and has good news: he has lead the authorities to believe that Johnny and Ponyboy are on their way to Texas and a "Soc" girl is going to testify that Johnny killed her friend in self-defense. Johnny wishes to turn himself in, and they go back to the church to retrieve their belongings, discovering that the church is on fire. A school group is there, and little children are trapped inside. Ponyboy and Johnny immediately race inside and rescue the kids. As they are attempting to run out of the burning building, the roof collapses. Ponyboy barely escapes, and a piece of timber falls on Johnny, badly burning him and breaking his back. The boys are now viewed as heroes, and they are raced back to the hospital in an ambulance. Johnny dies, and Dally becomes extremely grief-stricken and robs a grocery store. He flees to a vacant lot where the rest of the gang is waiting, and the police chase him there. He pulls a "black object" from his pocket, and the police believe it is a gun and shoot him. Ponyboy misses both of his friends dearly, and writes a book in order to remember them.

Type of Book: The Outsiders is an example of a trade book.

Type of Reader: I would consider myself a casual reader. I probably read about 3 or 4 books a year, and they are usually books I have already read.


Questions & Answers-

I read this book in English class during 8th grade, and I still remember it very vividly. I also have seen the movie a few times, and I enjoy both. This book impacted me because it shows you how the worst moments can bring out the strongest qualities in people, whether the qualities are good or bad. I also really loved the fact that no matter what kinds of horrible things happened to the gang of "Outsiders", they stuck together through thick and thin. Even after Johnny and Dally are killed, Ponyboy vows to "make their deaths mean something". This story definitely has deeper meanings. The theme of innocence is symbolized in the Robert Frost poem, "Nothing Gold Can Stay," which Ponyboy reads to Johnny at the church. As Johnny dies, he tells Ponyboy to "stay gold," meaning hold onto his innocence despite the cruel conditions of the world in which they live. Another theme in the story is shown when the Socs and Greasers come together after the three murders and decide they will be tolerant of each other and not continue to fight based solely on class differences. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good story that tugs at the heartstrings. I have never read any other books from this particular author, but I would highly recommend this author simply because "The Outsiders" is that great of a book.

Word Count: 697..man I'm good!