The greasers usually get bullied and sometimes attacked by another group called the Socs (Socials) – ‘the West-side rich kids’ as what Ponyboy calls them. One day, Ponyboy finds himself surrounded by the Socs but was rescued by his gang. He was lucky this time because his friend, Johnny, had been jumped by the Socs who beat the life out of him. Johnny has become a much more nervous person since the incident.

That’s the life that Ponyboy knows. He is a good student at school and is on his way to become a track star. But he is a ‘greaser’ who cannot get along with the Socs. There is the difference between the two groups in terms of class, society and lifestyle. Ponyboy usually hangs out with his brothers or close friends such as Johnny, Two-Bit Matthews, Steve and Dally.

However, something unexpected happens when Ponyboy and Johnny come face to face with a group of Socs in which one of them had beaten up Johnny before. The group was not happy that their girlfriends had preferred the company of the greasers during an outing to the movies. They then confronted the two young boys not knowing what happens next – an occurance which will spark many changes after that.

I have always wanted to read The Outsiders because I know it won awards and was listed as one of the highly recommended books for young adults. Moreover, I was impressed that the author, S.E. Hinton, began writing the book when she was only 15 years old.

The important themes in the story are on the different social classes and stereotyping. We also read about friendship and family values as well as the sacrifices that the characters are willing to make for one another. For example Darry skipping college to instead work at two jobs to make sure his younger brothers, especially Ponyboy, are well taken care of.

This is an honest book that will give readers an unforgettable insight into the trials and tribulations of the characters. I also liked the way the book ended.

Oh, I will be sure to watch the 1983 movie version which starred C. Thomas Howell, Rob Lowe, Emilio Estevez, Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Ralph Macchio and Diane Lane.

Charlie Sinclair is 24 years old and holds two jobs. He works on an assembly line in a factory by day and thrills rock music fans by night. He plays the guitar in the band who calls themselves Pistonhead. Even though they have only released two CDs and keep a small following of fans, the band members remain optimistic by doing what they love to do, that is to make and play music together.

However, Charlie feels as if his life isn’t going anywhere. He only holds a temporary day job. His band gets booed at certain shows. His childhood friend and lead singer of Pistonhead, Rip is hooked on drugs. He has no girlfriend. His apartment is filled with mice. His mother has a new boyfriend he doesn’t know about. Charlie wished he could tell all that to people who think he leads a glamorous rock star life.

Then suddenly something happens that ultimately changes everything. The band’s future becomes uncertain. Charlie’s future looks even bleaker.

This novel of only 174 pages has the plot going smoothly. It only revolves around one very important week in Charlie’s life. Told from the third person limited point of view, we readers see life and music though Charlie’s eyes.

Despite the rocker musician’s spectacular performances on stage, Charlie becomes just as ordinary as everyone else once he gets off stage. People think he leads a promiscuous life with groupies but all Charlie wants is a girlfriend who loves him as he is. This is where I wonder if his co-worker Lisa has feelings for him though there are hints of it. There is also an eccentric love scene with Lisa’s friend, Tamaya.

I really enjoyed reading the concert scenes and Charlie’s feelings when on stage. The most exciting part for me is where one of their performances got a lukewarm response from a very hostile audience. I was on the edge of my seat and tried to guess whether the band would stop playing or just go on with the show.

The author of this novel, Thomas A. Hauck was a rock musician and songwriter for 15 years. He had played with Boston-based bands such as the Atlantics and Ball and Pivot. You can read more about the bands here.

Check out Thomas Hauck’s guest post on my other book blog, Books Love Me!

***Thanks to Mr Hauck for sending me a copy of his novel to review.

Since Fanny’s an orphan, she’s been under the care of her two doting aunts and her uncle who’s her guardian. Fearing that Fanny will be tricked and hurt by Stacy, Abby tries to keep them apart. Well, she can’t really separate them but she keeps an eye on them whenever she can. Fanny is only 17 years old and Stacy’s much older. Therefore, it’s quite odd and disturbing to know that an older man would genuinely be interested in Fanny. There’s also been a case of unsuccessful elopement in Stacy’s past.

Now there’s another Calverleigh in the picture. It is Stacy’s uncle, Miles Calverleigh who has also tried to elope some 20 years ago. Because of that and as punishment, he’s been sent to live in India. Well, the prodigal son has since returned and he has set his sights on Abigail Wendover herself! Two Calverleighs showing interest in two Wendovers! It couldn’t be more fascinating.

Miles doesn’t seem to care for anyone else or what other people think of him. Although Abby tries to refrain herself from laughing out loud at the things that Miles say, she just couldn’t help chuckling every now and then during their conversations. They’re obviously falling for each other but can the Wendover family accept such a man as Miles Calverleigh, the known black sheep of his family?

The ending is a delightful one. I was curious to find out if Stacy will actually marry Fanny or if he’ll just ditch her because he can’t get approval from her aunt and uncle. Will Fanny also see his true colours and not put him on so high a pedestal?

I’m so glad Black Sheep has been a better read than Friday’s Child, the first Georgette Heyer book I’ve read. There are only 18 chapters in this book so it wasn’t quite a drag. I was pleasantly surprised to come across some funny parts in it and actually laughed at them. I don’t remember laughing once with Friday’s Child! Maybe I should give these books a chance.

***Thanks to Danielle Jackson from Sourcebooks for sending me this book to review.

This was my first Georgette Heyer book and at least, it’s better than Austen. It is still dull for me, the story was slow and I really couldn’t wait to finish the book! So I’m really, really glad it’s over.

Anyway, what day were you born on? I was born on a Wednesday and I guess I’m full of woe. Friday’s child is loving and giving, which describes Hero perfectly. Hero’s an orphan and she’s been under her cousin’s care ever since she was young. Well, her cousin wasn’t really fond of her and her life’s actually quite miserable.

The hero in the story would be Sherry or Lord Sheringham. He has asked the Incomparable or Isabella for her hand in marriage but was rejected. Feeling indignant that he should be married right away so that he can have full control of his money, which was left to him by his late father, he vowed that he’d marry the next girl he meets. Sherry’s quite addicted to gaming and he is in a lot of debts.

And it’s no other than Hero Wantage who’s about to be sent to Bath to become a governess. She’s also Sherry’s childhood friend and adores him completely. When he suggests that they get married, she agrees on the condition that they don’t interfere in each other’s lives. It’s like they’re free to do what they want but in a discreet way, I guess. So, they set off to London and Hero says goodbye to being a governess.

With the help of Sherry’s cousins, Gil and Ferdy, the wedding goes smoothly. They nickname Hero ‘Kitten’. After that, life goes on as usual. Hero gets along very well with Gil, Ferdy, and another of Sherry’s friend, George, who’s completely smitten with Isabella and has always been trying to win her heart. Thanks to the characters of Gil, Ferdy, and George, as they make the story much more interesting! What would the book be without them?

Hero also lands herself in a number of scrapes and Sherry helps her out since he’s her husband and he’s responsible for her. But for how long will he tolerate it all? Hero utterly worships him and would do anything to make him happy. Whatever he says, she follows. She doesn’t really have a mind of her own but then when it comes to love, can’t blame her, right?

If you want to try Georgette Heyer’s books, I’m not sure if you should start with this one. I have more Heyer books to go and I hope that they might be better than this.

***Thanks to Danielle Jackson from Sourcebooks for sending me this book to review.

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: Ames

From the title, it’s obvious that the story revolves around Maggie, an active and vivacious 16-year-old country girl from Cobblers Eddy, Indiana. She enjoys spending time with her three best friends, Tom, Gordie, and Alfie. She and Tom have some romantic thing going on. Alfie is some kind of psychic. Sometimes, he knows what’s going to happen in the future.

Maggie’s world was turned upside down when she found out that her dad was going to move to New York and she and her mom are going too. Initially, she hated the idea of going to live in New York but later she understood how much it would mean to her father to work there. So, they did move to New York.

Maggie also wrote a letter to Tom, asking him to come visit her as soon as possible. After that, Tom, Gordie and Alfie hopped onto a boxcar, which they thought was going to New York. Alfie began to hear some strange music and before they knew it, they arrived in New York. But they arrived in the year 1984. They left Indiana in 1926. This means that they had travelled through time. Interesting, huh?

Meanwhile, in 1926, Maggie found out that the three boys had left Indiana to visit her. But they never came to New York. After weeks of their disappearance, they were declared dead and Maggie moved on with life. She got married and had a son. But she was not happy. She still wished she could see her 3 childhood friends again.

Well, she did meet them in 1984 when she’s already an old lady and the boys are still teenagers. The whole thing seemed completely bizarre for them. Totally unbelievable but it was hard to not to believe since they were all right in front of one another.

So, how do you think it’ll all work out? How will the relationship between Tom and Maggie develop? While reading, I wondered if Maggie will become young again. I wondered if it’s just all a dream for Maggie, Tom, Gordie, and Alfie. That kept me turning the pages.

Maggie Again is John D. Husband’s first novel and not a bad one either. I enjoyed reading it and if there’s a second novel, I’ll surely put it in my list of books to read.

Alfie looked down at her and answered her question in a low and somber voice: “You’re Maggie again.”

***I’d like to thank Lisa Roe for sending me this ARC to review. My very first ARC too!

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: Mrs S, Lauren

The story is about George Hall’s and his family’s adventures. I say ‘adventures’ because the things happening to them sound like that. George is a retired guy and he’s in the middle of building his own studio in his garden so that he has his own space to draw and paint. He also has some lesion on his hip, which he thinks is cancerous and he also thinks he’s lost his marbles.

Then, his wife, Jean, is having an affair with George’s old friend from work, David. Sometimes she feels guilty about it all and feels bad betraying her husband. One day, David poured out his feelings to her and asked her to be with him forever. To leave George and be with David, that is. But Jean doesn’t think she’s ready to take such a huge, drastic leap.

Besides that, Katie, their daughter, is about to get married a second time. She already has a little son, Jacob, from her first marriage. This time, she’s going to marry Ray. Unfortunately, her parents and brother don’t think that he’s quite suitable for her. Also, Katie isn’t sure if she’s in love with him or not.

Finally, there’s Jamie, Katie’s brother. He’s a homosexual and he’s having trouble with his partner, Tony. Jamie is also trying to get his life back together, trying to rebuild the perfect life he created for himself. Anyway, things don’t always go to plan, do they?

Well, doesn’t it sound like a pretty exciting book? I find that things got more exciting after about 60% of the book. My favourite part of the book was when Jamie’s mother and sister greeted Tony after a very unexpected scene, which shocked family and friends.

Actually, most of the book is about George. Yeah, it’s quite pitiful for him. He admits he’s afraid of death and yet he doesn’t get a thorough medical check-up. His family’s too busy to take any notice. They took it for granted that he could take care of himself, like he always did.

I guess this book would be perfect to pick up to read if you’re having a particularly rough day. While reading, imagine you’re in the shoes of any one of the characters (except little Jacob, though), then perhaps you might feel a little bit better.

Other Bloggers’ Reviews: Bibliolatrist

It’s about a young boy, Arthur Fearon, who is approaching his 13th birthday. However, he is absolutely devastated because his parents are going to take him away from school and make him work to earn some money. He has to pass an examination first, and then only can he leave school. He’s a smart kid and he did pass the exam.

His bad-tempered father took him to work at the docks. He managed to be picked on to work in a stinking bilge tank and later in a hot boiler. But, he gave up in the end. The work was just too hard and there were bullies who picked on him on his first day of work. Thus, to escape his father’s wrath and further work at the docks, Arthur hid himself in a ship, the Hernian, which was going to set sail soon.

He thought life was good when he was given a job on the ship. He had high expectations and intended on fulfilling them. Nevertheless, the other sailors did not give him an easy time and a couple of them even tried to take advantage of him. Arthur was upset that they treated him like dirt.

When the ship stopped at Alexandria, another sailor, Donagan, took Arthur to buy some new clothes. After that, he brought the boy to a brothel where he lost his virginity. The experience horrified him but later, he was determined to visit the same place and girl again!

When Boy was published, people thought it was too obscene and vulgar. About a hundred copies of Boy were burnt up, too! Hanley and his family suffered emotionally as well.

It’s definitely an interesting story of a young, poor boy who runs away from home, hoping to find a better life. He had an ambition and that was to be a chemist but his parents would not hear a word of it. This book is unquestionably an eye-opener.

Buy Boy (Oneworld Classics)