This week my class read the book “The Outsiders” by S.E. Hinton. A classic, this text is often required in high school classes (and often passed over for watching the movie and reading the sparknotes instead, as per the usual when we are young and believe wholeheartedly in our ability to get away with anything.)
The novel follows the exploits and inner machinations of Ponyboy, whose reflections on class structure and cyclical poverty are highlighted by the incidents of gang violence that have become his norm. When his friend kills a rival gang member to defend their lives, the two adolescents find themselves on the run. By the end of the novel they have engaged in an unexpected act of heroism, but it does little to change public opinion of the impoverished masses. Ponyboy decides to write his story, in hopes that it will make a difference.
This novel has a lot of merit (obviously, it’s a classic) For one it deals with important themes and social issues. It has an emotional impact on its readers that has stood the test of time. However, most of the symbolism in the book is very surface level, and it has a lexile level of only 750L, placing it on a level easily understandable by fourth graders. In a high school classroom setting, I would not use this as a unit text unless a great deal of supplementary material was brought in to make it more challenging.
As a supplemental/AR text however, I would reccommend it to teachers in any grade 5-12 because it tends to be a fast and insightful read that can coax even relunctant readers to engage in and enjoy the process of reading and even critical thinking, as they recognize how elements of the text relate to their own experiences or to the world around them.
Diary Of An Emotional Houseplant 