A review by diana_0417
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

emotional lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

 This book makes you think back on friend and family relationships. Although the family in this novel is not a typical type of family I could come around, descriptions and events made me feel related. I was able to feel connected to the characters that I felt grief running down at the end of the book (It got me sobbing which I don't do very often) For me, the book felt strange at some of the points, because the occasions taking place aren't common around my area of life. However, happenings related to themes like loyalty, friendship, and family are heartbreaking. It was a few chapters that made me continue reading. For example, how the characters sacrifice each other for loyalty makes you feel amazed and heartwarming. As a person who enjoys reading literary devices and symbols, this novel deliberately delivers significant messages through meaningful and emotional events that allow you to think throughout the chapters. Each character in the novel is unique and has an individuality that piques my interest to want to know more, compared to other books that I've read. Events that held me were rescuing the kids from the fire, and Ponyboy says, "I didn't have fear" just whirled me with such diverse emotions and thought back to my life "Have I ever had this kind of experience?". Themes such as social division are not topics that are mentioned and told in real life, but going through this book gives you a chance to think about a situation of struggle and class differences. Relationships formed within characters are closely tied together. In my experience, I have never had this kind of vulnerable relationship in life, so reading this story taught me emotions that could occur in the name of loyalty. The mood of this book is friendly but dark so it allows you to think seriously on theme matter. Also, the author's choice of putting the poem interested me in reading his other works. The ending is a little bit forgetful because it was kind of an expected ending. However, I liked that it tied the beginning and the ending together, usually when you reach the end of the book you forget how it started, but it ended in an opposite way so it got me thinking back on changes of my thoughts and perspectives as the story progressed. Again, the thing that I like about “The Outsider” is exploring a topic that is sort of controversial and not held so lightly, I have not got to read those kinds of books that often, and even though I do, I was hesitant to make give my thoughts but this book is set in a friendly easy-going way that I felt comfortable and got to think more about the themes. 
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