The Outsiders
by S.E. Hinton
Summary
The Outsiders follows Ponyboy and his gang, the Greasers. The Greasers come from a lower socioeconomic class and clash with the Socs- the "rich kids." Ponyboy, whose parents died in a car wreck, lives with his Greaser brothers Darry and Sodapop, but there is often conflict at home as well.
When Ponyboy and fellow Greaser Johnny are seen by the Socs with two of their girls, the Socs pick a fight. One of the Socs is about to drown Ponyboy and Johnny stabs and kills him, unintentionally. Ponyboy and Johnny decide they must run away to escape the police, but trouble follows them. When the boys discover children trapped in a burning, abandoned church they rush in to save them. They manage to get the children out and they are declared "heroes", but Johnny suffers a serious injury and dies shortly. The Greasers and the Socs potentially settle their feud with a rumble. The Greasers win and Ponyboy is relieved of charges in the stabbing.
APA Reference
The Outsiders is considered to be one the most pivotal books in the Young Adult genre. Dale Peck of The New York Times says that The Outsiders "empower[ed] a generation" and "changed the way teenagers read," leading them to "demand stories that reflected their realities."
Peck, D. (2007). The outsiders: 40 years later [review of the book The Outsiders]. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/books/review/Peck-t.html?pagewanted=all
Library Use
Because I regret not reading this as a teenager, I don't want other kids miss it too. The library could do book group for teenagers using The Outsiders and other "quintessential" teen books and books to be read before graduating high school (i.e. Catcher in the Rye, 1984, Little Women, Huckleberry Finn). These books are often discussed in school, but it is a pressure-filled environment and high-stakes situation. By reading these books outside of school for pleasure, I think the students can learn to appreciate them. I would have liked a program like this when I was growing and I think I would have benefitted from it greatly as I started college.
The Outsiders follows Ponyboy and his gang, the Greasers. The Greasers come from a lower socioeconomic class and clash with the Socs- the "rich kids." Ponyboy, whose parents died in a car wreck, lives with his Greaser brothers Darry and Sodapop, but there is often conflict at home as well.
When Ponyboy and fellow Greaser Johnny are seen by the Socs with two of their girls, the Socs pick a fight. One of the Socs is about to drown Ponyboy and Johnny stabs and kills him, unintentionally. Ponyboy and Johnny decide they must run away to escape the police, but trouble follows them. When the boys discover children trapped in a burning, abandoned church they rush in to save them. They manage to get the children out and they are declared "heroes", but Johnny suffers a serious injury and dies shortly. The Greasers and the Socs potentially settle their feud with a rumble. The Greasers win and Ponyboy is relieved of charges in the stabbing.
APA Reference
Hinton, S.E. (1967). The outsiders. New York, NY: Viking.
My Impressions
I missed The Outsiders in high school, which is why I immediately picked it off the reading list. I read it in almost one sitting, and loved it the entire time. I do wish, however, that I had read it as a teenager because I think I would have learned some important lessons from it. The first chapter or two I found particularly good, because there is such rich characterization. This might be why I had trouble liking books without good character development (see: Twisted Summer and Nancy Drew Girl Detective).
Review
The Outsiders is considered to be one the most pivotal books in the Young Adult genre. Dale Peck of The New York Times says that The Outsiders "empower[ed] a generation" and "changed the way teenagers read," leading them to "demand stories that reflected their realities."
Peck, D. (2007). The outsiders: 40 years later [review of the book The Outsiders]. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/23/books/review/Peck-t.html?pagewanted=all
Library Use
Because I regret not reading this as a teenager, I don't want other kids miss it too. The library could do book group for teenagers using The Outsiders and other "quintessential" teen books and books to be read before graduating high school (i.e. Catcher in the Rye, 1984, Little Women, Huckleberry Finn). These books are often discussed in school, but it is a pressure-filled environment and high-stakes situation. By reading these books outside of school for pleasure, I think the students can learn to appreciate them. I would have liked a program like this when I was growing and I think I would have benefitted from it greatly as I started college.
No comments:
Post a Comment