That Was Then, This Is Now
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| Author | S. E. Hinton |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Young adult novel |
| Publisher | Viking Press |
| Released | 1971 |
| Media Type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 160 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0670697982 (first edition, hardback) |
| Preceded by | The Outsiders |
That Was Then, This Is Now is a novel by S.E. Hinton. It was later turned into a film starring Emilio Estevez. The book (like Rumble Fish) takes place in the same universe as Hinton's first book The Outsiders. However, unlike Rumble Fish, which only hinted at a connection between the two books, in That Was Then, This Is Now the main character of The Outsiders, Ponyboy, is actually a minor character. (As "Curtis", his last name.) He is often referred to as a sometimes rival of Bryon, the protagonist, and even makes a few cameo appearances in the events surrounding the dance.
[edit] Plot summary
The novel is supposed to take place about one year after the events in The Outsiders. It is centered on the relationship between two teenagers, Bryon and Mark, and how they begin to grow apart. Ever since Mark's parents shot each other out of drunken rage, he has been living with Bryon, his best friend for as long as they can remember. They have spent their days boozing in dry river beds, playing poker, and hustling pool games.
But now things are changing. Bryon is spending more time with his girlfriend, Cathy, while Mark becomes more distant and isolates himself from Bryon while bringing in massive amounts of money.( Found out why in the end of the book) Also, Bryon is growing tired of the seemingly never ending street fights that plague their town, while Mark can't seem to live without them.
When Cathy's brother, M&M, runs away , Mark finds him in a hippie commune under the influence of LSD. Bryon and Cathy are able to have a talk with him, but then Bryon discovers that Mark had been actually selling LSD to other young teens. At the end of the story, Mark is in jail and he and Bryon are not friends anymore, Cathy has left Bryon, after they had a spat, for Ponyboy Curtis, from The Outsiders, and M&M tells Bryon of the lasting effects the LSD had on him. Bryon is left sad, wondering about everything that has happened but knowing nothing will ever be the same. The book, itself an epilogue to The Outsiders, has a prologue of sorts in S.E. Hinton's book Tex, In which Mark appears as a hitchhiker, and Cathy is the protagonist's English teacher. See Continuity within S.E. Hinton Novels R.N.#1001 KlEm2
