That Was Then, This is Now
Adam Ward
Book Report 2 Pre-AP Oklahoma History
May 3, 2013 The book I read was called That Was Then, This is now by S.E. Hinton. The book tackles issues of growing up. The main character, Bryon, will have to choose his best friends and how to deal with change. One theme of the book is that stuff will happen, and there is nothing that we can do about it. The book starts with Bryon and his best friend, Mark, at a bar, owned by their friend Charlie. Bryon and Mark are a couple of typical kids in the area. They live in the ghetto, where they get in fights, are involved in local gangs, and at this point, hustling people at pool. The pair of kids are very good at hustling. That’s how they get the majority of their money to buy soda and beer from Charlie, even though they are under-age. Next, they leave the bar to go meet their strange friend M&M. M&M is a 13 year old kid that is very mature for his age. He does things different from everyone else that he knows. M&M got his nickname from always eating M&Ms. He enjoys reading and taking care of his huge family. His parents force him to take care of his younger siblings, but he would do it anyway. While Bryon, Mark and M&M are together, M&M mentions his older sister Cathy is home. She will come back into the book later. After Bryon, Mark, and M&M leave their hangout, they get into trouble on the way home. They get into a fight. Nobody is hurt bad, but it shows the lifestyle the boys are living. Bryon and Mark were as close as brothers. They even lived in the same house. Mark’s parents killed each other when he was young, and Bryon’s mother took Mark in, as her own. Mark and Bryon grew incredibly close over years, but obviously, they had moral differences that would hurt the relationship as time went on. Mark was really into doing stuff against the law like hotwiring cars and “borrowing” them. He also accepted many things, but Bryon had a better sense of morals. When the boys were young, these issues didn’t
Book Report 2 Pre-AP Oklahoma History
May 3, 2013 The book I read was called That Was Then, This is now by S.E. Hinton. The book tackles issues of growing up. The main character, Bryon, will have to choose his best friends and how to deal with change. One theme of the book is that stuff will happen, and there is nothing that we can do about it. The book starts with Bryon and his best friend, Mark, at a bar, owned by their friend Charlie. Bryon and Mark are a couple of typical kids in the area. They live in the ghetto, where they get in fights, are involved in local gangs, and at this point, hustling people at pool. The pair of kids are very good at hustling. That’s how they get the majority of their money to buy soda and beer from Charlie, even though they are under-age. Next, they leave the bar to go meet their strange friend M&M. M&M is a 13 year old kid that is very mature for his age. He does things different from everyone else that he knows. M&M got his nickname from always eating M&Ms. He enjoys reading and taking care of his huge family. His parents force him to take care of his younger siblings, but he would do it anyway. While Bryon, Mark and M&M are together, M&M mentions his older sister Cathy is home. She will come back into the book later. After Bryon, Mark, and M&M leave their hangout, they get into trouble on the way home. They get into a fight. Nobody is hurt bad, but it shows the lifestyle the boys are living. Bryon and Mark were as close as brothers. They even lived in the same house. Mark’s parents killed each other when he was young, and Bryon’s mother took Mark in, as her own. Mark and Bryon grew incredibly close over years, but obviously, they had moral differences that would hurt the relationship as time went on. Mark was really into doing stuff against the law like hotwiring cars and “borrowing” them. He also accepted many things, but Bryon had a better sense of morals. When the boys were young, these issues didn’t