The Outsiders: S.E. Hinton (The Originals)

I’ve never read an SE Hinton book before; I’ll admit that until I read the introduction of The Outsiders that I didn’t even realise that Hinton was female. I assumed that a book about teenage boys and gang culture was written by a male writer. This was the first of many shocks; good shocks but ones that made me realise that I had a prejudice in me that I wasn’t aware of. Another surprise is that a book of such high acclaim could be written by someone so young. Hinton wrote her debut novel at the tender age of 17. Impressive – there is not much else to say on that matter The Outsiders centres on two rival gangs the ‘Greasers’ and the ‘Socs.’ The ‘Greasers’ come from the wrong side of the tracks, have no money, work hard but for very little and they have little chance of bettering themselves. As opposed to the ‘Socs’ – the middle/upper class people of society who get away with whatever they do because they have the money to back them up. Things get out of hand when greaser Johnny kills a Soc when trying to save his friend (and the protagonist of this story) Ponyboy. This causes an out and out war between both gangs and the results are fatal. It would be fair to say that nearly 50 years on from its publication date that the slang in The Outsiders is dated but the intention and the thematic resonance of the book is still extremely powerful and relevant in modern society. There are still gang related crimes happening everyday; there are still young children playing at being grown-ups with no worry of the consequence. SE Hinton’s debut novel is still as potent and as readable today as it would have been when it was first released. What I will say is that as a book reviewer it does take a lot to impress me and whilst I do really like a lot of the books that I read it does take something special to have be finish it in one sitting. That is exactly what happened with The Outsiders. This book is a classic for a reason. The Outsiders by SE Hinton is available now.

Great book can’t wait to read it

I read this book back in Secondary school and loved it then, and I still love it now. It’s a young adult coming of age book, with an underlying wholesome story following a troubled teen just trying to fit in. I feel like I see it on a different level now that I’m older and have kids around the same age as the protagonist here, it shows how easy it is for teens to fall off the tracks and not realise how important they really are to others. 10/10 amazing!!

a bit expensive

Love love love loved it

I've only ever seen the film once, and that was many years ago - so I was coming to The Outsiders virtually new. From the style of writing, dialogue and description, to the characters and social history - everything in this book 'pops' off the page in a very real way. I really felt for the naivety of some of the characters and reading from the point of view of a young man was a nice change to modern YA books, which seem to mainly be female MCs. If you've never read it you're missing out

Perfect quality, like the photo.

I read this when I was a teenager and loved it and read it again now aged 26 and it resonated with me equally as much. A story about class divides seen through the eyes of an intelligent and emotionally aware 16 year old boy it is a very touching story. This penguin modern classic version is very readable with a nice clear print and good quality paper. The cover photo captures the essence of the story well and it is a lightweight and easily portable book. Very good.

i read this a teenager and loved the book todeath had to replace it

Das Buch handelt von zwei rivalisierenden Gangs mit völlig verschiedenen sozialen Hintergründen, es gibt die Greasers und ihre Feinde die Socials (Socs). Die Socs sind die reichen und verwöhnten Jugendlichen die von allem zu viel haben und die Greasers sind der traurige Rest, die armen und verlorenen. Hauptfigur in "The Outsiders" ist der 14 jährige Ponyboy Curtis, es ist auch aus seiner Sicht geschrieben. Er lebt zusammen mit seinen zwei Brüdern, Sodapop Curtis der 16 Jahre alt ist und Darrel "Darry" Curtis der 20 Jahre alt ist. Sie gehören zu den Greasers, genauso wie ihre Freunde Johnny Cade 16 Jahre alt, Dallas Winston 17 Jahre alt, Steve Randle 17 Jahre alt und Keith Matthews genannt Two-Bit achtzehneinhalb Jahre alt. Durch die sozialen Unterschiede und persönlichen Feindschaften kommt es oft zu Auseinandersetzungen zwischen den Greasern und den Socs. Bei einer diesen Begegnungen tötet Johnny ausversehen einen Socs der versucht hat Pony zu ertränken. Die beiden fliehen und es folgt ein tragisches Ereignis nach dem anderen. Obwohl das Buch nur eine Woche von Ponyboys Leben widerspiegelt erfahren wir was alles, ob gut oder schlecht, in einer Woche passieren kann. Denn am Ende hat diese Woche 3 Menschen das Leben gekostet und Pony ist zu der Erkenntnis gekommen ob Greasers oder Socs, wir Leben zwar nicht gleich, aber das Sterben verbindet uns, denn es kann uns alle treffen. Leute das Buch ist einfach der Hammer. Das Englisch ist einfach zu lesen und das Buch liest sich schön flüssig!! Die Figuren sind sehr schön detailliert herausgearbeitet und passen perfekt in die Handlung und niemand ist überflüssig. Besonders die Curtis Brüder muss man lieben. Zwischen Pony und Darrel gibt es zwar viele Missverstände während der Handlung, aber zu meiner grenzenlosen Freude haben sie es am Ende endlich geschafft sich richtig nahe zu kommen, was auch teilweise Sodapop zu verdanken ist. Einzig Sherri Valance, genannt Cherry, hat mir nicht gefallen. Ich fand sie einfach nur nervig und hätte mir gewünscht das Pony eine beste Freundin hat die auch ein Greaser ist und ihm zur Seite steht!! Das Buch spricht vor allem das Menschliche in uns an. Für mich ist es ein Stück Weltliteratur und man sollte es auch heutzutage in Schulen behandeln. Es geht im Buch nicht nur um Hass oder pure Gewalt, sondern es vermittelt auch Werte wie Freundschaft, Loyalität und es zeigt Menschen die auf der Suche nach eigener Würde sind und ihrem Platz in der Welt. Und wenn euch das Buch gefällt solltet ihr auch unbedingt den Film sehen. Pony wird von C. Thomas Howell gespielt, Soda von Rob Lowe, Darrel von Patrick Swayze und es gibt noch eine Menge anderer super Schauspieler!! Also verpasst weder das Buch noch den Film, es lohnt sich!!!

Nog niet ontvangen. Morgen leveren is de volgende dag ontvangen.

PROPS TO THE BOOK COVER, THE STYLE OF WRITING, THE CHARACTERS, THE FREAKING STORY ITSELF! I love this book so much, one of fav read.

Growing up is difficult. The desire to fit in is pitted against the encouragement to be unique and different. A person’s actions as well as the influence of family, friends, and society helps to form a person’s identity. And, this isn’t all kids need to worry about: they will face and deal with bumps in the road and times where they’re down. Ponyboy in The Outsiders thinks his life is figured out, until one night his world is flipped upside down. S. E. Hinton thoughtfully crafted The Outsiders out of her own experiences. A story written in 1965 is still relevant today and captivates the reader with a youthful, slangy writing style which allows the reader to bond with the characters. The Outsiders, written in 1965 Oklahoma, displays the struggle between two gangs in a town. The narrator, Ponyboy Curtis, his brothers, and friends make up the Greasers. This rag tag group of impoverished guys stick by each other's sides no matter what. They are up against the rich, snooty, Socs. These guys drive around in their expensive cars and jump Greasers to appear cool and intimidate them. In a constant battle between the Socs and Greasers, Ponyboy Curtis discovers there is good and bad in everyone. The story displays a conflict between two gangs who think they are very different: “Greasers are almost like hoods; we steal things and drive old souped-up cars and hold up gas stations and have a gang fight once in a while” (3). On the other hand, “[Socs] jump greasers and wreck houses and throw beer blasts for kicks and get editorials in the paper for being a public disgrace one day and an asset to society the next” (3). It isn’t safe for a Greaser to walk around alone, for the Socs always pull up in their convertible, hop out, and jump them. The Greasers despise the Socs and the Socs despise the Greasers. This is the case for Ponyboy too until he meets Cherry, the toughest Soc’s girlfriend, he realizes that Socs aren’t all that different after all. Cherry and Ponyboy share many similarities, especially their love for sunsets. With the help of Cherry, Ponyboy realizes the greasers, including himself, misjudged the Socs. Yes, they do get drunk and beat up Greasers for no good reason, but they are human and they have lives outside of how well they can fight. Will Ponyboy get everyone else to see the Socs true colors? Can this ever get better? The conflict remains relevant to society fifty years after it was written because there always seems to be this in-group and out-group. Not only is the story relevant to society, but it also maintains a young, slangy tone that allows the reader to connect with the characters. S. E. Hinton commented that “these characters are really kind of universal without losing their individuality.” The story, written when the author was only fifteen years old, is told from Ponyboy’s perspective. Ponyboy is a fourteen year old kid living with his two older brothers, Darry and Sodapop. Sodapop is sixteen and Darry is twenty and has custody of Sodapop and Ponyboy since their parents died in a car crash. Ponyboy’s young and optimistic, so his narration draws the reader in. Initially, Ponyboy feels very self-conscious and vulnerable: “I was wishing I looked like Paul Newman- he looks tough and I don’t” (1) He’s the youngest of the gang and looks up to his older, tougher brothers and friends. Within the first few pages, Ponyboy walks home from the movie theater alone and is stopped by Socs. “Need a haircut, greaser?” they ask him, “How’d you like that haircut to begin just below the chin?”(5) His brothers find him, fight back and save him. In Darry and Sodapop’s eyes Ponyboy is still young and fragile. But, as the story advances Ponyboy fights hard to prove the gang wrong. He grows stronger as he learns to be courageous, defend himself, and later in the process meets death face to face. S.E Hinton said “When I write, an interesting transformation takes place. I go from thinking about my narrator to being him,” and this is also how I felt while reading this. Ponyboy is forced to grow up in order to fit in, and as this happens the reader gets to grow with him and see him both thrive and grieve. With help from family and friends, growing up can be much more manageable and even fun. When reading The Outsiders I could never put the book down. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone looking for an easy read with a timeless story and a powerful message.