The Outsiders

The questions

1. Ponyboy says Socs and greasers are the same underneath. Do you buy that, or is it the thing he needs to believe?
2. Darry is twenty and raising two brothers. What has he given up, and does Ponyboy see it?
3. Johnny is the one everyone protects and the one who acts. Why do you think Hinton wrote him that way?
4. Dally says to stay tough and Johnny says to stay gold. Which advice would you follow this year?
5. The book was written by a sixteen-year-old. What does it get right that adult books about teenagers usually miss?
6. Where does the loyalty in this group turn from a good thing into a trap?
7. Cherry crosses between the two groups and pays for it. What does the book say about who is allowed to move?
8. Is there anyone in this story an adult could have saved? Which adult, and when?
9. Ponyboy writes it all down as a school assignment. Why does telling it help him?

Running the night

• Pick the night before anyone leaves the last meeting. A fixed weeknight beats a good date.
• Text the sheet's first question two days ahead. It is the only prep anyone will do.
• Something to eat that does not need a plate on a lap.
• One person keeps time. Ninety minutes, then the book talk stops.
• Start with the round: one sentence each on where they got to. No apologies allowed.
• End by naming the next book and the next date out loud.

For this bookDo not do this one at bedtime. Do it over food, sitting sideways, no eye contact required.

BringThe book, something to write with, and the one passage you underlined.