The Outsiders

S.E. Hinton's 1967 classic, published when she was a freshman in college, is as appropriate and realistic today as it was then. Fourteen-year-old Ponyboy, his brothers, and his friends are poor outcasts--"greasers." They have little but always stick together. After they're victims of the town's "socs (socials)--kids with lots of money, tough cars, and chips on their shoulders--everyone comes to realize how deep and serious their divide is. Narrator Jim Fyfe presents Ponyboy and his group, along with the socs and their circle, with '60s' language appropriate to each socioeconomic group. No character is all good or all bad, and when the final violent confrontation erupts, listeners are sorrowful but not shocked. This moving story is excellent for all ages and perfect to illustrate both sides of bullying. S.G.B. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine