by S. E. Hinton
A tough young kid tries to live up to the mythical reputation of his brother
Reviewed by: Paul A. Paterson
About Paul A. Paterson
Rusty-James is the toughest kid in town and spends his time shooting pool and trying to live up to the reputation of his legendary brother, known only as The Motorcycle Boy. Unfortunately, forces even stronger are conspiring to change his life. Motorcycle Boy suddenly shows up again, he's kicked out of school and his girlfriend dumps him. To make matters worse, he's beginning to follow in the steps of his alcoholic father.
As the story unfolds, the qualities that allowed Rusty-James to thrive and survive -- toughness and street smarts -- hamper his ability to adjust to his new reality. He admires his brother and wants to emulate him, but he lacks Motorcycle Boy's intelligence and depth. Rusty only sees life in black and white and tends to live in the past. Motorcycle Boy sees the shades of gray looks to the future. The irony throughout is that Motorcycle Boy's character is colorblind and suffers from amnesia caused by riding without a helmet.
Rumble Fish is S.E. Hinton's most controversial book. Unlike most of her main characters, there is very little to like in Rusty-James. He's ignorant, insensitive and self-absorbed, characteristics that make him vulnerable in his new reality. As things progress, he's too dumb to realize the light at the end of the tunnel is, in fact, a train. The violence and cruelty demonstrated by many of the characters is unfiltered and at times hard to read. I think this might be Hinton's best work because of this. There are no hookers-with-a-heart-of-gold in this work. People are who they are, warts and all.
Rumble Fish was also made into a film which, while underrated, featured Mickey Rourke, Dennis Hopper, Nicholas Cage and Lawrence Fishburne. Francis Ford Coppola, who shot the film in black and white creating a memorable look, directed it. The book is well worth the read, then go check out the movie. You'll be glad you did.
Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: Rumble Fish
Copyright © by Paul A. Paterson, 2002
Reviewed by Paul A. Paterson:
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