The Outsiders, Week 2

Welcome to Week 2 of the Online Book Club discussion of The Outsiders.

Did you all enjoy the first section? Did any of you have to read this book in school? I think I read it in eighth grade, so it's definitely been a while since I've read it. I like that it's a straight forward read. I felt like I was flipping pages really quickly! 

Do you enjoy all of the characters? Is there a boy that you find yourself connecting with more than the others? I like that the book is from Ponyboy's perspective. He seems so much more innocent than the other boys. I also really like the brotherly connection between Ponyboy and his brothers. I can't believe that Darry is so young but is doing such a good job raising his younger brothers. Darry definitely sacrificed a lot to make sure that the brothers could all stay together. 

There was a lot of action in these few chapters, didn't you think? I felt like I didn't read very many pages in these chapters, but a lot of stuff happened to the boys! How surprised were you when Ponyboy and Johnny were jumped by that group of Socs? I was surprised by the attack, and I was definitely surprised that Johnny defended himself so fiercely. It made me really sad that Ponyboy and Johnny--the two most innocent and kind of the bunch had to have that experience. I thought it was interesting that Ponyboy didn't actually witness the murder because he passed out from being in the water. It definitely helped keep the violence level in the story down to not have Ponyboy witness the attack. Were you surprised that they decided to go to Dallas to get help afterwards? It made sense that he would be able to help them make a plan since he's presumably run from the law before. How long do you think they are going to be able to stay away? Do you think the police are going to come after them? Do you think they will end up going to jail? 

Earlier in the section, the Greasers meet Cherry and Marcia, and that kind of sets later events in motion. What did you think of Cherry and Marcia? They were interesting characters--Cherry was definitely more interesting than Marcia. Were you surprised that the girls were willing to speak to the boys? What did you think of that scene? Why was Dallas so set on being shocking? And, why was Cherry still interested in him, even though he was not acting politely? I think Dallas was pretty scary. I can't really imagine having a conversation with him. 

Do you have any idea what's going to happen in the next section? How are Johnny and Ponyboy going to get out of this mess? What do you think Darry and Sodapop are doing while Ponyboy is gone? Surely, they are incredibly worried about him!

Before you go, check out the clip below where author, S.E. Hinton talks about the book and the new Broadway adaptation. Let me know what you think of the interview in the comments!

Make sure to read chapters 5-8 before joining us next week! I can't wait to hear from you in the comments!