That was then, This is now by S.E. Hinton

Jelly Saldivar

Plot Summary
Mark and Bryon have been friends since they were little. Bryon's mom wanted the most kids she could have, but only has Bryon. Mark's parents both shot each other in a drunken argument, and he has lived with Bryon ever since he was ten, and Mark was nine. Bryon's mom feels bad for Mark and lets him live with them. Ever since then, Mark has gotten into a lot of fights to let out his anger. He eventually starts to bring a lot of money home and Mark doesn't ask how, because he knows that it just makes Mark mad.

One day Bryon gets home really late and sees that Mark isn't home yet. Feeling stressed, he looks for a pack of cigarettes under Mark's bed. There he finds a cylinder shape thing, and when he opens it, pills come rolling out. He knows that they can't be for Mark because there were so many. That's when he finds out that Mark is selling drugs, and how he brings so much money back home.

Critical Evaluation
That Was Then, This Is Now has to be a 10 out of 10 because its such a great good book. It's a book that has action, love, sadness and suspense. I really like how the author wrote the book. It has a lot of details that when you read the book, you can picture it in your head. It's one of those books where you can put yourself in either Bryon or Mark's position, and go through all the rough times they go through. It's such a pager turner that before you know it, you will be done with the book.