Book Club Guide

The Outsiders

by S.E. Hinton · 1967 · Young Adult

Key themes

Class, loyalty and the violence between those who have nothing
The Greaser world and its codes of honour
Coming of age in a world where the cost of growing up is losing what you love

About this book

Class warfare among teenagers, written by a teenager; the book that arguably invented modern YA.

Written when Hinton was 15 and published in 1967 when she was 18, The Outsiders pioneered the young adult novel as a serious literary form. It remains one of the most-assigned texts in American middle and high schools.

Discussion questions

The Greasers and the Socs are divided by class, but both groups are trapped in cycles of violence. What is Hinton saying about whether escape is possible — and who does she allow to escape?
Ponyboy is sensitive, literary and out of place in the Greaser world. How does Hinton use his perspective — and what does his love of literature say about the novel's values?
Johnny's final letter and his instruction to 'stay gold' reference Robert Frost. What does this allusion add — and what is Hinton saying about innocence and its loss?
The novel was written by a 16-year-old. Does this origin affect how you read it — as more authentic, more limited, or simply different from adult perspectives on youth?
The Outsiders is one of the most challenged and most assigned school books in America. What does it offer that makes it both provocative and educationally valuable?