Many teens say this is the first book they ever enjoyed reading, even though it's often required. S. E. Hinton wrote it when she was only sixteen years old, and her insight into teen angst may explain why adolescents identify with Ponyboy so strongly.

Readers find plenty of action here and an idyllic view of friendship, a major concern for teens. The dialogue sounds like what we'd expect from 1960s Southwestern teenage delinquents, such as "Shut up talkin' like that" and "Didya catch 'em?" Adults appear in the book only briefly; this is a teenage world, and Ponyboy spends most of his time trying to figure it out.

However, the story doesn't rise much beyond pulp fiction, possibly another reason young readers enjoy it. Hinton gets her characters out of certain murder convictions only by suddenly turning them into heroes, saving little kids from a convenient fire. Johnny sacrifices himself to atone for his sin. Ponyboy broods about everything, emerging ready for life.

But don't dismiss this book because of its lack of literary pretensions. In the battle to get teenagers to read, it's a nuclear missile. Teenagers love this book; it teaches them that they can enjoy reading, as Ponyboy already knows.

S. E. Hinton also wrote That Was Then, This Is Now, Tex, and Rumblefish. A superior treatment of real street kids is Ineke Holtwijk's Asphalt Angels.