For example, both books have been written in first person and from the perspective of the main characters, both of which are young and intelligent boys. Another similarity would be the fact that the killing of a prominent character happens in the book. Though one is in the beginning and one in the end, characters close to the protagonist are lost. Gang violence is one of the key elements in The Outsiders, but That Was Then, This is Now also has said element. Not to mention the characters that crossover from one book to the other; Ponyboy is a supporting character in That Was Then, This is Now, and Randy and the Shepard gang also appear. In The Outsiders, Cathy, one of the main female characters in That Was Then, This is Now, makes a cameo as Two-Bit’s girlfriend late into The Outsiders. While these two books are similar, there are, of course, many differences. The plot of The Outsiders basically revolves around the ‘rich vs. poor’ trope, while in That Was Then, This is Now, that trope is not found. Racial discrimination, domestic violence, and drug abuse are some main factors in That Was Then, This is Now that you would barely be able to find in The Outsiders, if not at all. In The Outsiders, you can find organized, close-knit gangs. In That Was Then, This is Now it is just groups of friends who are close and occasionally …show more content…
Hinton. The characters were well thought out and original, along with the plots and events. I especially enjoyed seeing the conflict between the character’s morals and personality; that made it much more interesting to read. I found it very impressive how eloquently written and gripping the books were despite the author being quite young at the time of writing them, although the thoughts and characters could be developed more. But, I did enjoy reading both books and liked the plot twists and events that happened in each. Out of the two, I enjoyed reading The Outsiders more because of the more complex plot and likeable characters. I hope S.E. Hinton continues to write more fantastic novels in the