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Tim's Reviews > The Outsiders
The Outsiders
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In my review of Rumble Fish I said that I had no intention of reading The Outsiders… and here we are not having had a full year pass and I've read The Outsiders. How did this happen? Well, for one thing I saw the film The Outsiders for the first time and was shocked by how much I enjoyed it. Second I stumbled upon this in a buy two get one free book deal and decided that for free I'd give it a shot.
Fine then, I'll read it but I probably won't like it!
...
Okay, I liked it.
Had I not known Rumble Fish was the later work, I would have assumed this was. It's a much more confident and skillfully crafted work. The other was more experimental at times (which I for one applaud) but it felt like occasionally the author didn't know where things were going to go. This is far from the case here. This one feels carefully put together, with a clear intention of start, finish and everything in between. There's a couple of really clever bits of foreshadowing in some of the early lines and a lot of beautifully described scenes. The voice here is confident and appealing.
This is even more shocking to me because apparently Hinton started writing this book when she was only 15. The book was published when she was 18. While it is not the greatest written piece of literature in the world, I can imagine very few authors pulling off such a work at such a young age. Especially capturing this much depth in her characters.
I won't say I have no intention of reading any more of Hinton's books in the future, at this point it would just be tempting fate to prove me wrong, but for now I am satisfied. 4/5 stars.
"Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold...”
Fine then, I'll read it but I probably won't like it!
...
Okay, I liked it.
Had I not known Rumble Fish was the later work, I would have assumed this was. It's a much more confident and skillfully crafted work. The other was more experimental at times (which I for one applaud) but it felt like occasionally the author didn't know where things were going to go. This is far from the case here. This one feels carefully put together, with a clear intention of start, finish and everything in between. There's a couple of really clever bits of foreshadowing in some of the early lines and a lot of beautifully described scenes. The voice here is confident and appealing.
This is even more shocking to me because apparently Hinton started writing this book when she was only 15. The book was published when she was 18. While it is not the greatest written piece of literature in the world, I can imagine very few authors pulling off such a work at such a young age. Especially capturing this much depth in her characters.
I won't say I have no intention of reading any more of Hinton's books in the future, at this point it would just be tempting fate to prove me wrong, but for now I am satisfied. 4/5 stars.
"Stay gold, Ponyboy. Stay gold...”
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Regina
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rated it 5 stars
Feb 13, 2022 09:56AM
I still can’t believe she was so young when she wrote this!!!
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Shocking isn't it? I can't imagine writing this skillfully and confidently at such a young age.
My son read this in the 8th grade and loved it. I have never read it, but the teacher clearly knew it would appeal.
I think I also read an article that some author was trying to save Hinton's house (and perhaps the setting for the book), and preserve it.
This was my niece's favorite book for years, might still be, have to ask.
This was a book I used to teach my 7th grade English class. While it wasn’t one of my favorites, it did consume my students. For me that was worth all 5 stars.
