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

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!!

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 matterThe 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.

Exactly as described, arrived early

Tidy 2nd hand book. Quite a lot of previous school owner labels, though nice to have a clear cover

I don't understand how this book escaped my reading list for all these years. Thank god I accidentally stumbled upon it and read it. The Outsiders is a beautiful and heartbreaking story of 14 year old Ponyboy Curtis, his two older brothers and their gang, and their struggles to get by, living on the 'outside'.“They grew up on the outside of society. They weren't looking for a fight. They were looking to belong.”“...people get hurt in rumbles, maybe killed. I'm sick of it because it doesn't do any good. You can't win...even if you whip us. You'll still be where you were before - at the bottom. And we'll still be the lucky ones with all the breaks. So it doesn't do any good, the fighting and the killing. It doesn't prove a thing.”

When I was at school we strangely didn't read the book The Outsiders, but we watched the film so after many years I finally found the outsiders on the kindle and have just finished it. The book is beautifully written and you would never know a fifteen year old wrote it . I would encourage anyone who loves a good story to read this. It's a classic coming of age book which just about has everything in it. It will grab you from the start and take you on a rollercoaster ride. Stay golden.

This book is a really useful way to encourage teenagers to read. It is timeless and really supports meaningful discussions about life, culture and loss. A quick read too!

It was for my daughter for school but it came in great condition