That was Then, This is Now by S.E. Hinton is a novel published in 1971 by The Viking Press which consist of 159 pages. What would you do if you lived in the seventies? Living unrestricted, without any care in the world? In a perfect society for teens where they are uncontrollable? In this novel we will journey on with two teenage brothers who are living the life, but reality kicks in and for one of them it becomes too much to handle.
Since they were children, Bryon and Mark have been the best of friends; they were like brothers. Now, things are changing, making them grow apart. Bryon’s growing up, cogitating about who he wants to be. Mark, on the other hand, still lives for the thrill of the moment. They try to hold on to what’s left of their brotherhood bond, but Bryon makes a shocking discovery about Mark. Now, Bryon faces a terrible decision, one that will change both of their lives forever.
Bryon and Mark live with Bryon’s mother who is Mark’s foster mother. Mark’s parents died because of a drunken argument that got out of hand when he was a little kid.

At the beginning of the novel, Bryon and Mark go to one of their favorite hangouts, Charlie’s bar, a rough pool hall where they often try to hustle people for money. Later, they find their hippie friend, a kid with the nickname M&M, who tells them that his sister, Cathy, is home from private school. They hang out for a while, but M&M gets bored and leaves. Mark and Bryon follow, just in time to stop some gang members from beating up M&M.
Later, they visit their mother in the hospital who just undergone a big operation, that cost a great deal of money. They were still short on money and were struggling in making it. They find ways to make the money, like hustling and stealing, but Bryon wants to obtain the money honestly and tries to get a job. In the hospital, Bryon and Mark visit a kid named Mike Chambers because their mother told them to visit him; he didn’t get any visitors. Mike tells them the story to why he was in the hospital; it was because he was jumped by a group of people trying to help a woman. That story opened Bryon’s eyes and got him thinking.
An incident happened leading to Charlie’s death. Bryon is greatly affected by this tragedy. His mom is now home from the hospital, but in bed rest. They’re still low in money so Bryon straightens up and gets a job at the grocery store. Surprisingly, Mark brings in money as well, but Bryon questions where he gets it from. Now, Bryon and Cathy are together which starts making Bryon and Mark slowly drift apart.
M&M, Cathy’s brother, has left home and is nowhere to be found. Every night after work Cathy and Bryon drive around the Ribbon, a two-lane street filled with drive- ins and shopping malls, in search for M&M. One day, Mark and Bryon went driving around the Ribbon

and got home drunk. Bryon kept talking about how his and later asked Mark to go out looking for M&M with him. Mark showed Bryon where he could find M&M, but he wasn’t there. The next day, Bryon and Cathy went to the house where M&M should be; he was there, but his mind wasn’t. M&M was tripping out from a drug he had taken so Bryon and Cathy brought him to the hospital. After the M&M incident Bryon goes home confused and bewildered. He wanted a cigarette and he checks under Mark’s bed, the original hiding spot, but finds a bag filled with drugs. He now faces a terrible decision that’ll change his life forever.
The novel takes place in the 1970’s in a rough neighborhood in the east side of Tulsa, Oklahoma. During this time, the antiwar movement and peace movement were taking place. There are fragments in the novel that talk about getting drafted, like in one of the chapters where Charlie is melancholy because he was drafted by the army. During this period in the novel the greasers and socs, the two main social classes, weren’t as belligerent as they were in The Outsiders. The setting of the story is significant because it shows what kind of environment the characters were exposed to and how that factor affected their behaviors, views, and actions.
The author directly presents the characters, like ‘Mark and me went down to the bar/pool hall..” from chapter one page nine. The story is told in the first person narrative whose point of view is limited to what Bryon observes and thinks. The story is told form Bryon’s point of view. We see all the actions and events through Bryon’s eyes and don’t have access to any information to which Bryon does not have access to. The protagonists in the novel are Bryon and Mark.

The plot of the story is Bryon making the decision of turning in Mark to the cops for selling and possessing narcotics; this decision will change their lives forever. Then Mark’s gets taken in for the drugs and Bryon has to testify in a court hearing. Now Mark’s in jail and Bryon plans to visit him. When he does, Mark makes it very clear that he loathes Bryon for what he did and will never forgive him. The novel ends with Bryon having mixed feelings and was unsure of things; he is filled with regret and emptiness.
The major conflict of the story is when Bryon is left with making the decision of turning in Mark for selling drugs. Mark turns into a heartless man who doesn’t think of Bryon as a brother anymore. This makes Bryon think about what he did, regretting everything. Now, he wishes he had the answers to everything.
The theme of the novel is displaying the reality of growing up. It shows the importance of maturity. We recognize the consequences for the actions we make. The novel can even be seen as an allegory for this process of maturation: sixteen-year-old Bryon straightens up to have more responsibility towards his own path. The novel encourages readers to think before you act because any action a person makes changes their lives forever, whether it is good or bad.
The style of the novel is sequenced as a journal, making it have an informal facade. The novel is filled with slang, like when Bryon uses the word “tuff” which in modern slang means being cool. The novel is categorized as a ‘coming of age, young adult’ type novel.

The title That was Then, This is Now The is appropriate for the novel because it describes the changes between Bryon and Mark’s life in the past and in the present. In the novel what happened when Bryon made the decision to turn Mark in and how that changed their friendship is an example of what they had back then and what they don’t have anymore.
The novel contains similes, foreshadowing, and flashbacks. When Bryon was introducing Mark, he said that he had a grin like a friendly lion, an example of simile. When Bryon started to change his attitude and started straightening up it foreshadows his attempt to making a better future. Before Bryon arrived at the hospital’s snack bar he passed by two cops and recalled time when he was walking home drunk and two cops took him to a secluded area and started beating him up, making him lose respect for them is an example of a flashback in the story.
I was intrigued with the book when I first read the synopsis; the “terrible decision” the author talked about really got to me and made me want to read. After reading the novel, I was sort of disappointed with it because I expected a greater plot twist. I personally think it wasn’t as great as The Outsiders, but was still a great read. I learned a valuable lesson after reading the novel. I learned that in life, we will come to a point where we become mature enough to make our own decisions. These decisions would either make us or break us. Although I was disappointed with the outcome, I still recommend the book to anyone looking for an interesting read.