Book Review

I really enjoyed reading this book, and thats saying alot. Normally I would rather stare at a wall and do nothing than read but I couldn't stop reading this book. I think I read the howl thing in 4 sittings. Once I started I couldn't stop.

The Outsiders is a story of struggle and survival in a time of need. The Greasers have it rough, really rough. They live in a bad neighbourhood and they don't have very much money either. They fight and steel for everything they have and most of them share a common dream. They want to live normal lives. Start a familly, get a good job and not have to worry about getting beaten half to death day after day. The story takes place in 1967 in Arkensaws. The city has been devided into two halfs. The east side, which is really poor, and the west side which is very rich and a nice area. Theres gangs all around, but the only ones who have problems with anyone are the Socs. The Socs are rich kids. I don't like them at all. They take advantage of what they have and look down on anyone thats not like they are.

The book begins when Ponyboy(the main charecter) exits a movie theater. On his walk back home he gets jumped by Socs and thats where the story begins. The battle has began but the war is far from over. People die, and come together in bad times and get through them.

I really enjoyed this book over all. Its a good book for a teenage boy forsure. Theres lots of action and its also suspenseful too. When the book got really intense I would get goosebumps. Also it relates to people to. Things that go on in the book also happen to me every day and I kind of liked that. The Outsiders is number one in my mind. I would give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Blog#12

I think that reading the Outsiders has taught me some things that I didnt know before. One thing it taught me is if I ever move to city, which I plan on doing I shold watch my back. Don't trust anyone, keep your doors locked, and stay out of alleyways and gang turf. But then again I wont be a teenager, Ill be an adault and adaults tend not to get involved with that sort of stuff. I would just have to watch for robbers and theifs, as well as vandles. If I had stairs leading to a window in my apartment, like on most I would put metal bars over the window, kind of like they do at a jail. But not only has it taught me to not be so nieve, but its taught me the value of friends and just how powerfull friendship really is. The gang is all those boys have. They stick together, look out for eachother care for eachother unconditionally. Friends like that are hard to come by. Most kids look out for themselfs and couldn't give a damn about anyone else. Those people are a dime a dozen. The Greasers look out for eachother, if one is in trouble they all help out any way that they can. Also Ive learned that good things can come from bad things, and its what you make of that situation that makes it turn out the way it does. When Johny and Ponyboy were stuck inside the church they were able to talk to eachother and help eachother cope with what went on because they both were going through it. Some kids say that they have your back and stuff like that but only 1% of those people actrually mean it.

Blog#11

One of the strongest mesages that I got from the book was how racism is around lots of places and nobody benefits from it. If you think about we're all the same race. we're all Humans and I don't know why everyone else doesn't think like that. In the Outsiders the Socs hate the Greasers. They think of them as scum and trash. The Socs and the Greasers. There both different types of people I guess you could say or different groups of poeple but they still fight. Thats what rasism is to me. People discriminating againts people. Some people feel the need to hate on others for some reason. A religous man would say that its Gods great plan for everyone. I say its boulderdash. I mean what are these people fighting for really. Its usually over something compleatly stupid, or someones threatning to bomb another country. People are fighting over land and territory. I think you should be happy with the country you got. If you don't like it then move out hypacrit. I dont think that racism will ever stop, as bad as that sounds but it wont go away. It gets passed down from parents to kids from kids to friends and so on. Even animals can pick up on that too. People have faught over that since the begining of time and will until the end.

Blog#10

I don't think that violence solves anything, but sometimes you have to fight for whats right. Some people may think that I am a nut for saying this but I think that its true. When someone doesn't give you the respect and the rights that any person deserves (exept really bad people) I think thats a pretty good reason to stand your ground. I used to get bullied when I was younger and my dad told me if someone pushes you around you stand up for yourself and they wont do it again. So when I when I went back to school the boy pushed me, his name was Troy, I turned around and punched him in the gut and knocked the wind out of him and he cried in front of everyone. He couldn't look me in the eye after that. What would happen if nobody had tried to stop the Nazi's, we would be in trouble. So I can see why the Greasers did what they had to do. After being jumped by Socs in there own territory day in and day out they decided they had enough. The Greasers just wanted to be able to go around without having to watch there back every 5 seconds or so and I don't blame them Either. Thats not how I would want to live.

Blog#9

Loosing someone you care for is hard. You can't go through life without loosing someone you care for, and if you do chances are there was nobody there to begin with or you have no soul. The only person that I have lost that meant alot to me was my grandpa, or as we call him Pappy. When I found out that he had died I was pretty sad, but also in denial. It didn't hit me until I saw his body at the funeral house but it wasn't pappy, it looked nothing like him. His skin was pale and his face was like stone. For Ponyboy, and all the Greasers for that matter loosing Johny was like loosing a brother, and a damn good one to. Even I was sad when Johny died and hes a fictional charecter. Just as soon as him and Ponyboy really become like brothers its all taken away in the blink of an eye. I think the hardest part for Ponyboy was that he watched his friend slowley die. He knew it was coming sooner than later and theres nothing he could do. Thats what would really tear me up is knowing someone I care for is dying and there is not a thing in the world that I could do. Everyone expeirences losses but nobody deserves a loss like that.

Blog#8

Living at home is pretty great I must say. Free meals, good company and hot showers I defanitly can't complain. To have to run away from home would be one of the hardest things ever. When im 18 or 19 I'll be old enough to live on my own but I don't think I am ready now. For Ponyboy and Johny to run away was probably the hardest thing they have ever done, not to mention they were wanted for murder. Even though they were gone for only a week and a half I could only begin to immagin how crapy it would be. They got a gun ad 50 dollers and stayed in an old run down dirty church. They had nothing to do to pass the time exept smoke and read, which isn't bad once and a while but I would kill myself before the ciggarets did. I think staying up in the church really made there friendship alot stronger. They really relied on eachother for support and had nobody else to turn to. They were the only ones who knew how eachother felt because they were in the same boat. I hope that I never half to run away from home and live in a stink hole, thats not how I would want to become good friends with someone, and I don't think thats how they wanted to do things either.

Blog#6

Just because someone is in a certain group of friends doesn't mean that there like the poeple they hang out with. If your a Greaser society labels you trash and thats bull crap. Sure some of them are real bad apples like Dallas but not all of them. They contribute to society like most people. Most have jobs, or go to school. I wasn't to suprised to see that Ponyboy and Johny saved those kids. A couple of hoods save 5 young children from a raging fire. That takes guts. I can Honestly say that I wouldn't know what to do in that kind of situation. I don't think that I have ever been in a situation like that in my life. I have stopped people form fighting and things like that, one time I saw some jerk fighting with an old woman and I told him to take a hike But thats about it. When I get in trouble for something im usually good at keeping my mouth shut but Ive never pulled someone out of a blazing inferno. I think that if someone I knew was in trouble I would defanitly help them out but I wouldn't run into a fire, its like walking into a flaming death trap and theres a good chance that theres nobody in there anyways.

Blog#5

Even though I had already read the book I still felt I needed to see more. So I went onto adobe last night and I started to watch some of the Outsiders, the movie. When I was reading the book I pictured the characters through there descriptions. I was kind of shocked to see that the characters looked nothing like I thought. For example I thought that Dallas had long Greasy blond hair and looked kind of like a sketch bag, but he looks nothing like that. He has short brown hair and isn’t nearly as mean as I thought he was. I think I liked reading the book better than watching the movie, don’t get me wrong I really enjoyed the movie but reading the book was a lot more fun. I never thought I would say those words. When reading the book you really get into it. You visualize everything and every little aspect while in the movie everything is already planned out. I think the most disappointing part of the movie for me was when I found out that Patrick Swats was playing the roll of Carry. I wouldn’t have seen that coming from a mile away. Also the Characters don’t look tough at all, they look like pretty boys but I guess that’s what Hollywood does. There’s never someone that is ugly in a leading roll, or for that matter in the movies.

Blog#4

Even though the Outsiders takes place in the late 1960s gang violence hasn’t changed to much. I think that its gotten a lot worse since that time personally. The Greasers mostly just fist fight, skin on skin. The worst that they would do is carry around a blade, and even then its more of a bluff opposed to actually using it. Also there not as territorial as some of today’s gangs. The city is basically divided into two half’s and that’s about it. Today is a lot different from those days. If you walk into the wrong neighborhood in a certain part of a city you will most likely be gunned down. Gangsters today also look a lot different. Most gangsters think that there living in a fifty music video. They carry around guns and most of there crimes are revolved around drugs, but they still fight over territory. In the outsiders the Greasers just want the Socs to stay off there side of the city and go about there day. The gangsters today go looking for trouble. Most of them carry around guns and do drive by shootings. I can’t recall anyone in the Outsiders fighting over drugs or who sells the drugs but today that’s what the fighting is mostly about. I think that the more technology progresses there will be more gang violence. Im not to sure there is any sort of way to stop it either, most cops wont go into the really bad neighborhoods because there afraid of the gangsters. In the Outsiders the Greasers are afraid of the cops.

Blog#7

Ive been in a few scraps in my time but i have never hit someone with a weapon, unless you call a pool noodle a weapon of course. I wouldnt have the slightest clue of what to do if I ever got jumped because it happens so fast. Next thing you know your on the ground with 3 or 4 guys wailing on you. If I were Ponyboy or Johny and I saw a carload of Socs coming my way I would run for dear life, Id rather be called a wimp than be beaten to an inch from death. I remember last summer some guys from Whitby came to town and jumped 2 of my friends and they didn't know what the hell hit them. The car stopped and they ran out and started beating on them. If i were Johny I wouldn't have stabbed The guy, but I would defanitly defend myself. Then again chances are I would be sleeping at 3 in the morning. When I was reading and found out that Johny had killed that kid I was shocked. He was supposed to be the nice guy of the group, the scared boy but I guess if you back a scared boy into a corner he's going to panic and do something rash.

Blog#3

So far in the novel I think that most of the charecters have been introduced. If I had to choose sides I think that I would roll with the Greasers. Im already kind of greasy to begin with and im not rich so I think I would be thrown into the Greaser catigory. I think being a Greaser would be more fun than being a Snoby Soc. Sure the Socs have cars, money and woman but the Greasers have more than that, there like a brotherhood. The Socs are almost like kids without souls. There so caught up in being cool and all stuff while the Greasers are concerned about other things. Basically they just want to live there lives day by day and get out of the crummy neighbourhood they live in. They want to be somebody that goes on and does well, not someone who ends up in jail or in a body bag. Then again there are some Greasers that want to be as bad as they can be and take pride in there criminal record. I think if i were to relate myself with someone in the book I think that I would be Ponyboy. Before I knew what the outsiders was I had people tell me that I looked like Ponyboy and I got really ticked off, but now if someone said that I would take it more as a complament. Acording to the people in the book Ponyboy isn't a bad looking guy haha.

Gang fight goes sour

The Arkensaw gazzet.
March, 25, 2009

At aproxamently 3:30am on the east side of the city in a parking lot, 17 year old Robert Squires was stabbed to death in a gang fight between to opposinng gangs who were fighting over something rediculus.

There were not to many witnesses and the cops were called about a half hour after the stabbing took place. Friends of Robert told police what had happend and it turns out that the howl mess is there fault and the end result was the death of there friend.
It turns out that the kids fighting are involved in gang activity and the fight was between two opposing gangs. The Socs and the Greasers. There were four Socs and two Greasers at the time of the fight.
Robert and another boy grabbed 14 year old Ponyboy Curtis and started to drown him in the fountain. By the end of that fiasco someone was going to loose a friend. The boy who murdered Robert will not have his named released until he goes through court. He will be charged for manslaughter.
The boy saw his friend being drowned in the fountain and saw the only way he could save his friend was by stabbing the other boy.
After fleeing the seen the Two Greasers skipped town. Sources say that They Went to the train yard and caught the 3:15 to Windrexville. The boys were hiding in a church on the hill until it burned down. suprisingly the boys went and saved a couple of kids trapped in the church and were later taken to the hospital and that is where the police pined them for the murder. Ponyboy Curtis will be rewarded for his heroism and the charges on him have been dropped. The other Boy is in Critical condition after suffering back trauma. If he survives he will be charged for manslaughter and sent to jail.

Blog#2

This will be my third post, and my second blog. So far the book has been really good. The action starts as soon as you open the book and doesn't stop till yea put it down. I really like the fact that the book is based on real events. When im reading the book I can picture every little detail. Every crack in the sidewalk and I can clearly picture what the charecters look like. I really like the fact that the city has been split into two halfs. If I were in the novel theres no doubt in my mind that I would be a greaser living on the east side. The east side is a rough area, theres no such thing as a safe place even if you live there you have to watch your back. The buildings are run down and the crime rate is high. When im reading I usually picture things in my head. The buildings are tall. Stores on the bottem floor and then people with lower income living above. Crack houses, poor houses, but not rich houses. The only real houses are in some of the neighboorhoods but for the most part I picture big old buildings, like the ones on downtown king street. Lots of back ally's for people hid and hang out and rooftops to escape cops. The west side is nothing like the east side, to me anyways. I picture big houses, fancy cars and rec centers and Y.M.C.A's. Not to many big buildings, just more suburbs. The greasers are the hardend city kids while the Socs are from suburbia is basicaly what I have gatherd from the book.

Character Profile

For the record this is not One of my 12 blogs, i still have eleven more of them to do. This is my character profile and origonally i was going to do this as a blog but I guess you can't so im glad I didn't over the break. It turns out that the main charecters and the book itself takes place in Arkensaws. I thought that the book took place around New york cause it mentions that Dallas (a character in the book) lived in new york and sometimes travels back and forth from where the book takes place but I was wrong. Also the time period in which it takes place is 1967, and not the late 50s like I though. There were lots of interesting charecters in the book but the five that im going to choose are probably the most involved with the book.

The main character of the book is Poneyboy Curtis. The book basically revolves around him and I think that the author relates to him aswell. Ponyboy lives in a rough neigbourhood on the east side. When the book takes place he is about 14 years old. Most of the greasers are really dumb and can't read or write but Ponyboy is the opposite. If a greaser shows any kind of emotion or sign of weakness or something like that he would probably get beat up. He's more pattionet about things and is very innocent compaired to some of the hardend guys in the group. I think the only reason that he's a greaser is because that his old brothers are. I think that hes the main charecter because of his individuality. He likes reading, going to the movies and has a wild immagination that often runs away with him. I think that Poneyboy is a real sensative guy. He needs someone to talk to about things and he relies on his familly and friends which brings me to my next person.

Sodapop Curtis is Poneyboys older brother, but not the oldest. Sodapop is Poneyboys best friend and he is his idol. Sodapop is really easy going and i think that he is the most laid back out of everyone in the group. He's 16 years old and dropped out. Him and his best friend steve work fulltime at a gas station working on cars and pumping gas, pretty cool job eh. All the woman love Sodapop, its almost like hes a movie star or something. Theres always chicks following him around and on the weekends the gas station is loaded with chicks that want to see him. Soda always has something funny to say and brings people together to. When his brothers fight he's the one to break them up usually. I guess you could say that hes not into the gang as much as the others and hes defanitly not an all out greaser even though he does have the greasy hair which brings me to my next person.

Johny C is my favourite charecter in the book. Its weired but I feel bad for Him even though hes only a charecter in a book. Johny has it the worst out of everyone. On nice nites Johny sleeps in the vacant lot, which is the Greasers main hangout. His parents hate him. His mom ignores him and his dad beats him all the time. The only real familly he has is the gang. personally i think Johny is a good man. He keeps his mouth shut, never argues with anyone, sticks up for his friends and is also one of the nice guys in the gang. In the book Johny gets jumped and beatin within an inch of his life by the Socs. A boy with lots of big rings on his fingers smashed him in the face and the head and they split his face open from his temple to his chin, broke ribs and chipped teath. I think thats what really pushed him over the edge. Johny also reminds me of a guy I used to be real good friends with when I was younger and whenever the book refered to Johny and Ponyboy doing something like hiding out of the church or hanging out in the vacant lot it would remind me of when I was younger, not that im old or anything.

Dallas Winston is as tough as nails and meaner than my mom when I broke the vacumm cleaner. Being a petty thug is what Dallas lives for, and he brags about his Criminal record. He enjoys a good fight, robbing people and stores as well as pretty much anything you could think of. He has an intence hate for everyone and everything exept his gang members, the only person Dallas actrually cares for in the howl story is Johny but he can't show it. I think that living on the streets in New York city would suck the life right out of someone and give them a reason to hate society. When you stand out and look diferent people often ridicule you, exspeacilly in those days. Also Dallas does jail time when hes around 14, 15 and is 17 when the book takes place so he is defanitly hardend beyond any point of return. I don't know to many people that are proud of being a criminal and having a record but the poeple I know that are like that will most likely end up dead or in jail and Dallas does both.

Darrel Curtis is the oldest of the 3 brothers (the brothers being Ponyboy, Soda, and Darry) and I guess you could say he is there gaurdian as well. When the boys were younger, not to far away from the time the book takes place there parents died in a car axcident so Darry was left to take care of the boys. Hes about 20 going on 45. To support himself and the boys he works 2 jobs. From what I got out of the book Darrys life is kind of sad. He was some kind of wonderchild who was really good a sports, probably could have gotten a schollarship and he got good grades too but instead of going to collage he had to get a fulltime job.

The Outsiders.

The novel that i have decided to read is The Outsiders by S.E Hinton. I have read about 45 pages so far and I can't stop reading it. Im not a guy that likes reading books but I can't stop reading this one.
The book takes Place in one of new york citys neighbourhoods, I think its the Bronks and it takes place in the 1950's from what i have gathered. The city has been devided into two halfs. On the west side you have the Greasers which are the poor kids. the west end of the city is very poor and lots of crime takes place. Then over on the east side of the city is where the Socs reside. The east side is where all the rich people live. The Socs are snobby rich kids and in my opinion are gutless.
The war between the Socs and the Greasers is never ending. The book is based on the Greasers. As a greaser they are hated by most people and looked down on by the general public. They are heavily outnumbered to. Its best for the Greasers to go places with other Greasers. Theres strength in numbers and they know this, but so do the Socs. The Socs drive around with 3 or 4 guys in there expensive cars and they jump Greasers, usually 4 on one. I really like the Greasers because there a tight knit gang. They stick together and lookout for eachother as if they were brothers. Other than themselfs they really have nobody else thats looking out for them but theres tons looking to find and hunt them down like the dogs they're made out to be.