That Was Then, This Is Now

Rating:
Summary: My opinion
Review: I think this book was a fantastic book. It shows the chanllenges you have to fear while you are growing up! IT shows how you should and should not deal with issues that you have to face in everyday life.

This book is about two best-frinds that are basically brothers. They live together and do everything together. When one of the boys is ready to grow up the other still wants to be a kid. They begin to grow apart when Bryon gets a girlfriend and he starts spending most of his time with her. Mark wants to know what has happened and why they fo not do the same stuff anymore and the only response he gets is "That was then this is now". As they grow apart they have to face many challenges on their own. WHich they have to do by themselves instead of their best-freind to be ther to help them.

Rating:
Summary: I did not enjoy this book
Review: Justin McAbee 1/11/01 3b Shaffer I think that this book was not very good. The ending was very predictable and I knew what was going to happen through the whole thing. I also did not like the way Bryon told on his best friend who is also like a brother. If someone finds out that one of his brothers or sisters is selling drugs they should first confront the person about it not just sell them out. I don't think that this would really happen in real life. I just think that the story could have been more realistic in some of the situations. For example, one thing that is not realistic is that Kathy and Bryon break up. This also would not happen because a guy wouldn't do that in real life. The way Kathy and him were would not change so quickly. I don't think that the book expressed realistic decisions that would be made by the characters. Another thing I did not like was the way that Bryon's mom reacted to all the conflicts and trouble that her sons got into. I know for a fact that a mother would not act that way, she would not just turn her head when her children were getting into constant trouble including fights, witnesses to a murder, and smoking. all in all, I did not enjoy this book and I don't recommend it to anyone unless they like unrealistic conclusions.

Rating:
Summary: that was a great book and this is still a great book
Review: That was then adn this is now is a great book with a great message form the author. The author i think personaly is tryign to tell us, the children. This message was that every tiem you think about fightign or takeing drunks think about the conciquences, you may never fully get back what you lose. For example M&M took LSD and he never will recover fully. And if you want to go cut soem girls hair off when your drunk be prepared for a good beating because one day it will backfire at you weather its her big brother after you or the whole school after you. Bryon was a hustler and he got a good lesson from then when he one a game against soem cowboys then left the bar(they were underaged as it was) wait out side were the two coyboys who went to shoot bryon but then charlie jumped in front and saved his life and losing his own.Mark bever got to say thankyou for useing you car and many other things because of this instent death. This was very hard for bryon. And as a proven factr of life wich i hope everyoen relies is smokeign is a killer and it also revelse the truth wothin wich isnt alwasy the best thing i am not saying any oen dies form smokeing thats just a fact of life i love the author of this book and i have read the majarity of the books she worte she send great messages and from readign this book i know i will never do any kind of gang fighting ,drugs,hustleing,drinking,abd stealing over all this book was fantastic and i KNOW you will feel the same way!!

Rating:
Summary: greate book
Review: I am going to tell you about That was then This is now,and it is by S.E. Hinton. It think that my friend would like this book because she is really into stuff like this and i do to but she does best. The reason that i think she would like this book is because she loved the movie of the out siders and the movie is something like it but not exactly like it. I am going to tell you a little about the book, It all started when M,M runed away from home. Bryan and Kathy M,M sister who looked just like M,M. Was driving around looking for M,M they drove down the ally and meat up with Marke.Mark was like a big brother to Bryan. So mark and bryan took kathy home and mark told bryan where M,M is so they went to the house and he was not home .The next day bryan went back and found him.M,M was on some heave druges and he about died.You can read the reast.

Rating:
Summary: The Hard Way
Review: S.E. Hinton's, That Was Then, This Is Now was a great book. If you are a person looking for a book about cheating and getting into mischief, then this is a book for you. Right from the start of this book it caught my eye. There is two best friends named Bryon and Mark who always seemed to be getting into trouble. They thought of themselves as brothers because when were young Mark's parents shot and killed each other and Mark moved in with Bryon and his mother. Bryon was known as a player but he fell in love with his friend M&M's sister. M&M was a really smart kid who always read and babysat his little brothers and sisters he really liked it. But his father picked on him all the time so he ended up running away with a group of hippies and started taking LSD and he had a bad trip and lost himself. Cathy who was Bryon's girl friend and M&M's sister took this really hard and so did Bryon because he cared for Cathy so much. Bryon later found out that his best friend Mark sold M&M the LSD and Bryon had no choice but to call the police. The Police ended up taking Mark to jail where he ended up in a state prison. In the end Bryon forgot about Mark and he broke it off with Cathy and went on his own. "That Was Then, This Is Now". I recommend this to everyone. I really like this book because it is about this day in age. Most of the stuff that happens in this book really happens now, so if you have a crazy life style then this should be a book for you.

Rating:
Summary: That was Then, This is Now
Review: The plot of That was Then, This is Now, is the problems teenagers face as they grow up. In the story Mark and Bryon are best friends. They have been best friends ever since Mark had to move in with Bryon, because his family was destroyed. As Bryon starts to have a serious relationship with a girl named Cathy, Mark becomes more distant from Bryon. They both know it is happening and Mark is trying to stop it. Mark just wants it to be like it was with Bryon. Also Bryon's mother needs help paying the mortgage, so Bryon gets a job, but Mark is bringing money in and nobody knows how is doing it. Everybody likes Mark. He is wild, but he doesn't know right from wrong. He has been on probation a couple of times for hot wiring cars. He also can talk his way out of anything. Mark thinks before he acts, and also has a good head on his shoulders. He is always trying to look out for Mark, so he doesn't go to Jail. The setting takes place back in the early 60's. They live in a big city, but in the ruff part of town. The story is about what happens in Marks and Bryon's life over a year. During that time period they aren't as close as they use to be, because Mark just isn't growing up. Where they always go to hustle people in pool, the bartender is gets shot saving their lives. Their friend tries LSD and has a bad trip. In the end, Bryon finds Marks stash of acid and figures that is how Mark is bringing in the money. At the time he thought it was the right thing to do and calls the cops. Mark gets arrested and goes to jail for five years. I really like this book because I could really relate to a lot of the things that happened in the book. It showed how everybody splits up and goes their different ways. On thing I did not like was how Bryon called the cops on his best friend, the way I look at it is no matter what it you never rat out your friends. I hate to see the book end where Mark hates Bryon, but I could understand why he does. He never tried acid it was just a way to bring in money so they could keep the place they were living at. If he wasn't dealing it there is always going to be somebody else who will.

Rating:
Summary: Unpredictable and Moving
Review: Amazingly realistic characters are the glue to That Was Then, This Is Now, an unpredictable, complicated story about change. S. E. Hinton's main character, Bryon, is so vividly described that the reader begins to envision him as a real, live person. In the beginning of the book, Bryon is tough and hard. Girls are just possessions to him; he dates around and breaks hearts for fun. Bryon starts to come out of this shell as he falls in love and gains sensitivity. His girlfriend, Cathy, helps him to see how special life can be and how much he has been missing. Towards the end of the book, however, as close friends get involved with drugs and Bryon is faced with some difficult choices, his new love of life begins to slip away. Things used to be so simple, but that was then, this is now.

Rating:
Summary: This is an excelent book!
Review: This book shows the reality of what life can be like if you live in a bad part of town even if you live in the suburbs like me. I recomend it for people who like to read because even though it isn't very wide the pages are very thin. It has 160 pages of small print.

Rating:
Summary: One great book
Review: That was then, this is now has got to be one of the best books that I have read. It truley expresses what makes you look at life diffrently, and want to grow up and mature. There is a close look at friendships, and how they change as we grow older.

Rating:
Summary: That Was Then, This Is Now
Review: I'm now 39, and I read this book as well as The Outsiders as a teenager. I continue to read these books every few years, and find them to be just as relevant today as they were when they were written. I have introduced these books to my daughters, and they enjoy them as much as I did.

Although the times around us change, the basic relationships and struggles we all endure do not. I find that I still learn lessons from these books today, and I highly recommend them to anyone who remembers being a teenager, or who is experiencing it now.