There are multiple similarities between That was Then, This is Now and The Outsiders. Both books are about coming of age in a harsh neighborhood and the complications of living harshly. One extreme similarity is that Ponyboy Curtis shows up in both books. Ponyboy plays a major role in The Outsiders, though the fact that he shows up in That was Then, This is Now too, shows how interlinked each book is to each other. The easiest explanation is simply that they were both written by the same author, and were about the same topic. It is very interesting, that as S.E Hinton decided to write a second book about harsh neighborhoods, she decided to re-use a character she previously wrote about 4 years previously in The Outsiders.
As the book moves forward, the similarities keep re-appearing. As Bryon and Mark were looking to help their family bring in some more money, they decided to go pool 'hustling.' They were quite good at pool, put wagers on their games, and made sure they only won by a small margin, so it would look like pure luck. This worked for them, until they were leaving and heard voices in the ally, calling them in. These were two of the men they had recently relieved of a large portion of their money. They said they had a gun, so Bryon and Mark choose to follow their direction. When Bryon and Mark saw the looks on their faces, they quickly understood that they were to be punched and kicked until unconsciousness, but along came Charlie (the poolroom/bar keeper) with a shot gun and took a shot at the men as the leapt away. The men fired back, hit and killed Charlie. As in The Outsiders, when Johnny killed Bob (a member of the Socs gang), the opposite happened. Instead of the protagonist's friend killing someone, his friend was killed, even before Bryon could thank him for letting him borrow his car.
Bob's death had a profound impact on Bryon, as did Charles death had on Ponyboy. After Charlie's death, Bryon felt like he was "moving in slow motion while other people were speeded up"(Hinton 86). Both were haunted by the death, for neither wanted either of them to happen. In both stories, this was a defining moment. People being beat up is one thing, but being killed is another. In That was Then, This is Now, though, the seriousness didn't stop with a killing. It progressed from smoking pot sometimes, to M&M going on a bad acid trip, and almost losing his brain. This brought everything down to earth for Bryon, and when he found Mark had been selling it, even if not to M&M, he was still extremely mad, and called the cops. This was the end of a life long relationship.
Hinton, S.E. "Biography." S.E. Hinton.com. Mar. 2007. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. <http://www.sehinton.com/bio.html>.
