# The Outsiders

**Author:** S.E. Hinton
**Lexile:** 750L
**Grade range:** Grades 7–9
**Age range:** 12–15
**First published:** 1967
**Page count:** 192
**Genre:** Young Adult Fiction
**ISBN-13:** `9780142407332`
**ISBN-10:** `014240733X`
**Canonical URL:** https://readinglist.school/book/the-outsiders
**License:** [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) — please credit ReadingList.school when citing.

## About this book

Ponyboy Curtis, a fourteen-year-old member of a 1960s Oklahoma gang called the Greasers, tells the story of a violent rivalry with the wealthier Socs. Written by Hinton when she was a teenager, the novel is often one of the first serious works of fiction assigned in middle school and remains a staple of 7th and 8th grade.

## Themes

- class conflict
- friendship
- loyalty
- family
- violence
- identity

## Content notes

- gang violence
- knife violence
- death of teens
- smoking
- underage drinking

Common Sense Media age recommendation: 12+

## Where this book is assigned

### Common Core State Standards (ELA)

- **recommended** · 7th grade — [source: CCSS ELA Appendix B, grades 6-8 exemplar](https://achievethecore.org/page/2699)
- **recommended** · 7th grade · Texas — [source: TEKS grade 7 frequently taught text](https://tea.texas.gov/)
- **recommended** · 8th grade · California — [source: CA CCSS ELA grade 8 aligned reading](https://www.cde.ca.gov/)
- **recommended** · 8th grade · Florida — [source: FL B.E.S.T. summer-reading list — rising 8th grade](https://www.fldoe.org/)
- **recommended** · 8th grade · Michigan — [source: Michigan ELA Standards grade 8 aligned reading](https://www.michigan.gov/mde)

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