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Taming the Star Runner
Sent to live with his uncle after a violent confrontation with his stepfather, sixteen-year-old Travis, an aspiring writer, finds life in a small Oklahoma town confining until he meets an eighteen-year-old horse trainer named Casey
181 pages, Library Binding
First published January 1, 1988
116 people are currently reading
3182 people want to read
About the author
S.E. Hinton
45 books8,149 followersS.E. Hinton, was and still is, one of the most popular and best known writers of young adult fiction. Her books have been taught in some schools, and banned from others. Her novels changed the way people look at young adult literature.
Susan Eloise Hinton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has always enjoyed reading but wasn't satisfied with the literature that was being written for young adults, which influenced her to write novels like The Outsiders. That book, her first novel, was published in 1967 by Viking.
Susan Eloise Hinton was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She has always enjoyed reading but wasn't satisfied with the literature that was being written for young adults, which influenced her to write novels like The Outsiders. That book, her first novel, was published in 1967 by Viking.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 292 reviews
April 4, 2020
"He wasn't cool. He wasn't tough. He wasn't even good-looking. He just stood there - a brainless, homesick idiot." -- protagonist Travis' self-regard, on page 49
Hinton's Taming of Star Runner is probably best remembered for being her last in a series of well-received and popular YA novels, as well as being the only one not adapted into a film version during the 80's. (I guess actors Matt Dillon and Emilio Estevez, as part of Hinton's unofficial stock company, were a tad 'long in the tooth' by the time of its publication to take a main role.) Although I was aware of her books - if only because of said movies - I had not actually read any of them until this one.
Travis is a sixteen year-old from (I think) suburban Missouri, straddling a very uneasy line between misunderstood teenager and juvenile delinquent. After unfortunately being goaded into a physical altercation with his abusive and sadistic stepfather, Travis is sent to reside in rural Oklahoma - a staple setting of Hinton's YA works - with his uncle Ken, a young attorney in the midst of a strained marital separation. Although naturally not everything goes swimmingly at first, loner Travis begins to finally get his life on track - he falls into a job at a nearby horse stable (and maintains a good work ethic), he develops a crush on an older and more mature young woman, and his uncle becomes a sort of de facto father figure to him. Oh, and Travis also gets a book deal (!) from a publishing firm.
I'm probably either making this story sound a bit boring or implausible, but it was remarkably sturdy, concise and contemporary book that - even though it is nearly 33 years old - I think still translates well to a present-day young-adult audience. Remember when I remarked in the first paragraph that I hadn't read any of Hinton's books? Well, I am definitely interested in reading the rest of them now.
Hinton's Taming of Star Runner is probably best remembered for being her last in a series of well-received and popular YA novels, as well as being the only one not adapted into a film version during the 80's. (I guess actors Matt Dillon and Emilio Estevez, as part of Hinton's unofficial stock company, were a tad 'long in the tooth' by the time of its publication to take a main role.) Although I was aware of her books - if only because of said movies - I had not actually read any of them until this one.
Travis is a sixteen year-old from (I think) suburban Missouri, straddling a very uneasy line between misunderstood teenager and juvenile delinquent. After unfortunately being goaded into a physical altercation with his abusive and sadistic stepfather, Travis is sent to reside in rural Oklahoma - a staple setting of Hinton's YA works - with his uncle Ken, a young attorney in the midst of a strained marital separation. Although naturally not everything goes swimmingly at first, loner Travis begins to finally get his life on track - he falls into a job at a nearby horse stable (and maintains a good work ethic), he develops a crush on an older and more mature young woman, and his uncle becomes a sort of de facto father figure to him. Oh, and Travis also gets a book deal (!) from a publishing firm.
I'm probably either making this story sound a bit boring or implausible, but it was remarkably sturdy, concise and contemporary book that - even though it is nearly 33 years old - I think still translates well to a present-day young-adult audience. Remember when I remarked in the first paragraph that I hadn't read any of Hinton's books? Well, I am definitely interested in reading the rest of them now.
October 16, 2021
It was a pretty simple story… I liked it and probably would read it again.
July 22, 2024
While there was value in the plot, there were many disjointed moments.
The book couldn't really pick a topic, and it felt like a few different stories were written at different times and then mashed together around a single MC. The tone and the styles felt completely different. This really messed with the flow.
It would have been stronger if the story had stuck with the horses and Travis' uncle.
Stuck at a 3 star, but I'm glad I read it.
The book couldn't really pick a topic, and it felt like a few different stories were written at different times and then mashed together around a single MC. The tone and the styles felt completely different. This really messed with the flow.
It would have been stronger if the story had stuck with the horses and Travis' uncle.
Stuck at a 3 star, but I'm glad I read it.
May 28, 2022
It's been a long time since I last visited this book. Taming the Star Runner is my favorite S.E. Hinton book after The Outsiders. It's not a horse book--not really. It's a book about Travis, a city kid in trouble. A writer. A cat person. A teenager who almost killed his stepfather and is lucky to be taken in--by an uncle who is nearly a stranger--after Travis's exit from juvenile hall. The uncle happens to own a horse ranch, and the girl Travis falls for rides a crazy untameable jumper.
The question is who is less likely to be saved: the horse or Travis.
I miss 190-page YA novels like this. There's something wonderful about sinking into a deep amazing world for 300-500 pages, but there's also beauty in precise, direct storytelling. Hinton is a master of the latter, and Travis is a full-blooded character full of contradictions, astute observations, and original thought.
*I'm also particularly fond of his cat, Motorboat, and the hero's use of the term, "happy feet." My cats all do "happy feet." And I have this book and Travis to thank for the early adoption of that terminology into my daily life.
The question is who is less likely to be saved: the horse or Travis.
I miss 190-page YA novels like this. There's something wonderful about sinking into a deep amazing world for 300-500 pages, but there's also beauty in precise, direct storytelling. Hinton is a master of the latter, and Travis is a full-blooded character full of contradictions, astute observations, and original thought.
*I'm also particularly fond of his cat, Motorboat, and the hero's use of the term, "happy feet." My cats all do "happy feet." And I have this book and Travis to thank for the early adoption of that terminology into my daily life.
January 23, 2015
I thought that the book, Taming the Star Runner, by S.E. Hinton, was kind of boring. It tells the story about how Travis was so cool when he was at his old school in the big city. He then moves to a very small town school to live with his uncle. He finds out that he is no longer the coolest kid in his school because it is way different than his school. Travis meets Casey, a local horse trainer, and immediately likes her. Travis wants to be an author and actually writes a book that he eventually gets published.
Travis is the main character in the book. He is around 15 years old and enjoys hanging around with his friends after school. He is the most liked kid in his old school but when he moves to the small town he notices that no one pays any attention to him.
Casey is the horse trainer on the private farm. She goes to many horse competitions and ends up winning most of them.
The time this book takes place in is modern day. The first part of the book takes place in a large city high school, the latter part in a rural country high school. The place is very important because Travis is from the city so he is very popular at his old school, but is pretty much non-existent in his new school.
The authors message is to keep with something even if you don’t like it at first. Travis hated when he moved to a small town but eventually he ended up liking it more than when he was back in the city.
I would recommend this book to young adults, either gender, because it has a great lesson that should be learned.
I would give this book a 3 out of 5 star rating.
Travis is the main character in the book. He is around 15 years old and enjoys hanging around with his friends after school. He is the most liked kid in his old school but when he moves to the small town he notices that no one pays any attention to him.
Casey is the horse trainer on the private farm. She goes to many horse competitions and ends up winning most of them.
The time this book takes place in is modern day. The first part of the book takes place in a large city high school, the latter part in a rural country high school. The place is very important because Travis is from the city so he is very popular at his old school, but is pretty much non-existent in his new school.
The authors message is to keep with something even if you don’t like it at first. Travis hated when he moved to a small town but eventually he ended up liking it more than when he was back in the city.
I would recommend this book to young adults, either gender, because it has a great lesson that should be learned.
I would give this book a 3 out of 5 star rating.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 24, 2009
This book is about a boy named Travis who almost kills his step dad and is sent to his uncle’s house. While he is at his uncles he finishes a book he is writing and finds a new part of him self. That he will never give up. Even when his step dad won’t let his mom sign the contract saying he can purplish the book he doesn’t give up.
In this book he finds a girl named Casey who is intimidating but at the same time the bravest loveliest girls he has met. She tames a horse called the star runner that no one else will even get near to. she helps him find a side in him that most people wont see, caring, loving, and best of all daring. Daring to show her that he has feelings for her.
I love how the characters how they work together. How they mix and mangle. How they show different sides of each other. How they show how much they care for each other in the weirdest ways.
In this book he finds a girl named Casey who is intimidating but at the same time the bravest loveliest girls he has met. She tames a horse called the star runner that no one else will even get near to. she helps him find a side in him that most people wont see, caring, loving, and best of all daring. Daring to show her that he has feelings for her.
I love how the characters how they work together. How they mix and mangle. How they show different sides of each other. How they show how much they care for each other in the weirdest ways.
September 19, 2024
S.E. Hinton is one of my favorite YA authors; I have read everything except Hawkes Harbor because I do not care for vampire stories. But her other novels I loved as a teenager, and once again in my middle age. I have reread her stories over last year and this year falling in love again with the strong, troubled male teenagers; you know the ones, the dark brooding types that always seem to end up in trouble while fighting the same emotions that every other teenager goes through.
This novel is about one such troubled youth, Travis. He basically assaulted his step-father so fiercely that it could be deemed as attempted murder, and after juvie he has nowhere else to go, so he’s shipped off to an uncle out in the country.
But there’s more to this story, much more. Travis has written a book and mailed it off to a publisher, and he’s dying to know what they said about it, even if it’s a rejection letter. He also has to adjust to a whole new life, one out in the country, with a new school and he basically lives with a stranger. He’s no longer around his support of friends, nor his mother, as little as she was. He takes his tomcat with him, but that’s about his only solace in this new life he has to start over with, that, and his writing, that is, if he could write another story instead of staring at a blank page.
I loved this book up until the last chapter. The ending almost ruined the whole book for me. Travis’ character was so raw, real, you felt his every emotion, understood each thought, but the ending just fizzled out, the reader left with little hope for Travis. Maybe that was what the author wanted, but it left me frustrated, because there were no resolutions, just changes.
I give it 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4) because of the poor ending. If you love Hinton’s novels, this is really good, just don’t expect too much at the end.
This novel is about one such troubled youth, Travis. He basically assaulted his step-father so fiercely that it could be deemed as attempted murder, and after juvie he has nowhere else to go, so he’s shipped off to an uncle out in the country.
But there’s more to this story, much more. Travis has written a book and mailed it off to a publisher, and he’s dying to know what they said about it, even if it’s a rejection letter. He also has to adjust to a whole new life, one out in the country, with a new school and he basically lives with a stranger. He’s no longer around his support of friends, nor his mother, as little as she was. He takes his tomcat with him, but that’s about his only solace in this new life he has to start over with, that, and his writing, that is, if he could write another story instead of staring at a blank page.
I loved this book up until the last chapter. The ending almost ruined the whole book for me. Travis’ character was so raw, real, you felt his every emotion, understood each thought, but the ending just fizzled out, the reader left with little hope for Travis. Maybe that was what the author wanted, but it left me frustrated, because there were no resolutions, just changes.
I give it 3.5 stars (rounded up to 4) because of the poor ending. If you love Hinton’s novels, this is really good, just don’t expect too much at the end.
July 26, 2023
I decided to sit down and reread this book.
I don’t give a shit about horses and I have never tried to kill my stepdad (I don’t have a stepdad), but this is one of the few books that I read almost exclusively for its characters, and honestly only a few of them: notably, Ken “in this economy?!” and Travis “too cool for school” Harris. Travis is what sells the story for me, despite how cringe he sometimes is. We have a lot of similar mannerisms—minus the violent stuff. Like Travis, I sometimes get lost in my thoughts (and teased for my superb observational skills); I also occasionally act like a “brainless…idiot” and listen to Springsteen while I “savagely” miss my cat.
Of Hinton’s “Oklahoma Five”—what I’ve come to refer to her five Oklahoma-based young adult novels as—Taming the Star Runner is by far the weakest. The characters are fine enough (I appreciate a few of them, but they are far from revolutionary), there’s some decent dialogue, the writing is okay, but the plot gets worse the further you read. This was the first of Hinton’s young adult novels that was written in third-person-POV, and especially compared to her other novels, it definitely leads to a less personal, less cohesive reading experience.
I do not give a shit about the romance. Remove it and focus more on Travis’s relationship with Ken and Travis’s whole process of trying to get his manuscript published. The plot is honestly pretty solid for the first ~120 pages—simple, sure, but I like simple. But past that, it devolves into madness!
The ending is whack. Maybe it has some larger meaning, but it is so poorly executed that it’s hard to tell. It reads as if Hinton compiled a bunch of ideas for books she knew she would never finish and just threw them all together so they wouldn’t rot in her notes. Maybe you could tie back some of the ideas in the ending to bigger ideas present throughout the book—of unbelonging, loneliness, change, growth, defiance, cultural divides (city vs. town), all the other coming-of-age stuff. But those connections can only be made loosely, and Hinton sacrifices much of the simple beauty that is often present in her books for farfetched ideas that are not nearly as fleshed out as they should be. Rather than enhancing my reading experience, the last 25 pages or so took me out of the story completely.
Overall, glad I reread it, and Hinton has some excellent books, but this is not one that I would typically recommend, unless I thought that the theoretical person receiving my recommendation would value the same aspects of the book that caused me to raise it from the 2-point-something that it probably deserves, to a 3-point-something.
I don’t give a shit about horses and I have never tried to kill my stepdad (I don’t have a stepdad), but this is one of the few books that I read almost exclusively for its characters, and honestly only a few of them: notably, Ken “in this economy?!” and Travis “too cool for school” Harris. Travis is what sells the story for me, despite how cringe he sometimes is. We have a lot of similar mannerisms—minus the violent stuff. Like Travis, I sometimes get lost in my thoughts (and teased for my superb observational skills); I also occasionally act like a “brainless…idiot” and listen to Springsteen while I “savagely” miss my cat.
Of Hinton’s “Oklahoma Five”—what I’ve come to refer to her five Oklahoma-based young adult novels as—Taming the Star Runner is by far the weakest. The characters are fine enough (I appreciate a few of them, but they are far from revolutionary), there’s some decent dialogue, the writing is okay, but the plot gets worse the further you read. This was the first of Hinton’s young adult novels that was written in third-person-POV, and especially compared to her other novels, it definitely leads to a less personal, less cohesive reading experience.
I do not give a shit about the romance. Remove it and focus more on Travis’s relationship with Ken and Travis’s whole process of trying to get his manuscript published. The plot is honestly pretty solid for the first ~120 pages—simple, sure, but I like simple. But past that, it devolves into madness!
The ending is whack. Maybe it has some larger meaning, but it is so poorly executed that it’s hard to tell. It reads as if Hinton compiled a bunch of ideas for books she knew she would never finish and just threw them all together so they wouldn’t rot in her notes. Maybe you could tie back some of the ideas in the ending to bigger ideas present throughout the book—of unbelonging, loneliness, change, growth, defiance, cultural divides (city vs. town), all the other coming-of-age stuff. But those connections can only be made loosely, and Hinton sacrifices much of the simple beauty that is often present in her books for farfetched ideas that are not nearly as fleshed out as they should be. Rather than enhancing my reading experience, the last 25 pages or so took me out of the story completely.
Overall, glad I reread it, and Hinton has some excellent books, but this is not one that I would typically recommend, unless I thought that the theoretical person receiving my recommendation would value the same aspects of the book that caused me to raise it from the 2-point-something that it probably deserves, to a 3-point-something.
January 10, 2019
Taming the Star Runner was much better than Rumble Fish and Quite better than That Was Then, This is Now. I still think The Outsiders can be beaten out of all of her YA Books. This one was really good though and quite different from her usual protagonist. I enjoyed each character though very much. I felt that the ending was a bit abrupt but it did answer most of the questions one would have about the fate of some of the characters. I really like the setting and I believe the background for Travis was far more flushed out and easier to get an understanding about than the lead characters in That was Then and Rumblefish. I gave it four stars because I truly did enjoy it a lot but I still don't think it could be The Outsiders. The Outsiders actually caused me to cry and pull emotions from me. You connect better with Ponyboy, Johnny and the rest of the gang better than the characters in the other books. Travis you can connect with in some ways but even his story was still less emotional compared to Ponyboy's. I will definitely reread this book at some time but I move on now to Mrs. Hinton's Adult Novel Hawkes Harbor. I will be interested in seeing how her writing changes for a different audience.
January 6, 2019
While I adore Hinton's other books, this one feels like something is missing. She still hits on the experience of being a teenager - introspective but naïve, emotionally sensitive but desperately "cool" - expertly. But here, her habit of mundane Odyssey plots, in which we follow a character through his ups and downs in a crucial time in his life, falls a little flat. None of Travis' adventures seem to be fully unpacked; conflict ends before it really begins. The novel plotline sails by with little interference on Travis' part, Joe's plotline is rushed and pushed to the sidelines, and the relationship between Casey and Travis feels flimsy, never fully developed. Even the symbol of the Star Runner is never quite explored to it's full potential. More of the very real, sympathetic characters Hinton is so good at creating are present here, but ultimately the story feels rushed.
July 17, 2022
There was a lot less taming the Star runner and a lot more random drama + a boy signing a book deal. Oof.
May 21, 2023
This is SO GOOD.
of course, there was a few things I didn’t like. Like Travis, okay I get you, horse girls are whatever but you also like a horse girl? And thinking just because a teacher is mad she has PMS. okay. You might be right but don’t be like that.
There’s just something about Travis. From the very beginning you felt for him because of Stan. And the ending gave me chills. I’m so proud of him for doing the thing. You know, his book.
This is a lot like That Was Then, This Is Now. I guess S. E. Hinton likes endings that don’t actually turn out the greatest. I started reading him because I saw someone’s review of The Outsiders but I still haven’t found a copy of The Outsiders.
Ok. This review sucks but the book doesn’t.
of course, there was a few things I didn’t like. Like Travis, okay I get you, horse girls are whatever but you also like a horse girl? And thinking just because a teacher is mad she has PMS. okay. You might be right but don’t be like that.
There’s just something about Travis. From the very beginning you felt for him because of Stan. And the ending gave me chills. I’m so proud of him for doing the thing. You know, his book.
This is a lot like That Was Then, This Is Now. I guess S. E. Hinton likes endings that don’t actually turn out the greatest. I started reading him because I saw someone’s review of The Outsiders but I still haven’t found a copy of The Outsiders.
Ok. This review sucks but the book doesn’t.
September 3, 2024
Not my favorite of Hinton's books. There is a limited number of characters, and only a few of them are shown in much depth besides Travis. The pacing is slow. I can compare this to The Outsiders as if Travis was given the (forced) chance to leave the tough life to stay with an uncle, and that move saved him from likely an otherwise darker path. Travis is aware of the world and the people he surrounds himself with, and once he realizes little ways he holds himself back, he stands a great chance at a successful life. The Star Runner, the horse from the title, seems to be a metaphor for Travis and his own behavior and choices.
I get the sense that this book is at least somewhat autobiographical to Hinton, because I've read before how she based her books on her own lived experiences. To what extent it may be autobiographical, I do not know.
I get the sense that this book is at least somewhat autobiographical to Hinton, because I've read before how she based her books on her own lived experiences. To what extent it may be autobiographical, I do not know.
May 20, 2025
Definitely not S.E. Hinton's best book. The plot was different than I thought it would be, though. I figured it would be just like one of those horse girl movies where they tame an untamable horse, but that wasn't what it was about and I'm glad it wasn't or I would've been bored half-way through. If you know anything about S.E. Hinton, you can tell that all of the parts of Travis being a writer are a self-insert. Altogether not my favorite book, but I did finish it in the span of a day, so I guess that counts for something.
April 8, 2025
Not really sure why this exists. Great read for a 12 year old circa 1985 though.
April 22, 2015
I read "Taming the Star Runner" by S. E. Hinton. I thought the book was great. It was set up perfectly. It has a little bit of everything in the book such as action. Travis likes to get into fights and at times they have to catch the Star Runner when it jumps the fence. There is romance between Travis and Casey. There is some comedy just because Travis is only 16 and some of the things he says are still immature at times. There is suspense when Joe shows up on Travis's doorstep looking for help. The only thing I don't like about the book is the end. Travis doesn't get the girl and the horse dies. Hinton likes to end books in mid sentence too, which bothers me.
Travis is the main character of the book. He is a writer and one day he came home from school to see his stepdad burning the papers he had typed for his book. Travis ends up hitting him in the head with a fire poker and is sent to a juvenile center. When he is out, he gets sent to live with his Uncle Ken in Oklahoma. Ken is Travis' uncle who is currently going through a divorce with his wife and is selling his land. Stan is Travis' stepdad who is a complete jerk to him. Joe is Travis' best friend from back home and at the end of the book was involved with a murder. Christopher is Ken's young boy. Casey is a girl who rents out Ken's barn to train horses and give riding lessons. Travis likes her but they become just friends at the end of the book.
The book takes place in the 1980's when people could get away with a lot more. When Travis sneaks into a club and gets drunk, they never called the cops. They just beat him up a bit then kicked him out. The book starts off in a big city airport because Travis is being sent away for a while because of what he did to his stepdad. A majority of the book takes place in a small town in the middle of Oklahoma. It is hard for Travis to get used to because everything goes by much slower there than in New York.
I feel the author's purpose in writing this book was to explain that it doesn't matter what happened in your past, you control the future of your life. It is just a matter of if you want to actually do something to change it or not. In the book Travis was put away for a while for almost killing his stepdad with a fire poker, but when he moves out with his Uncle Ken, he finds himself. Travis no longer wanted to be that person, so he went out and changed himself.
I rate this book five out of five stars. I would recommend this book to ages 12 and up of any gender. The book is fun to read, but it may be hard for someone younger to fully understand what is happening throughout the book.
Travis is the main character of the book. He is a writer and one day he came home from school to see his stepdad burning the papers he had typed for his book. Travis ends up hitting him in the head with a fire poker and is sent to a juvenile center. When he is out, he gets sent to live with his Uncle Ken in Oklahoma. Ken is Travis' uncle who is currently going through a divorce with his wife and is selling his land. Stan is Travis' stepdad who is a complete jerk to him. Joe is Travis' best friend from back home and at the end of the book was involved with a murder. Christopher is Ken's young boy. Casey is a girl who rents out Ken's barn to train horses and give riding lessons. Travis likes her but they become just friends at the end of the book.
The book takes place in the 1980's when people could get away with a lot more. When Travis sneaks into a club and gets drunk, they never called the cops. They just beat him up a bit then kicked him out. The book starts off in a big city airport because Travis is being sent away for a while because of what he did to his stepdad. A majority of the book takes place in a small town in the middle of Oklahoma. It is hard for Travis to get used to because everything goes by much slower there than in New York.
I feel the author's purpose in writing this book was to explain that it doesn't matter what happened in your past, you control the future of your life. It is just a matter of if you want to actually do something to change it or not. In the book Travis was put away for a while for almost killing his stepdad with a fire poker, but when he moves out with his Uncle Ken, he finds himself. Travis no longer wanted to be that person, so he went out and changed himself.
I rate this book five out of five stars. I would recommend this book to ages 12 and up of any gender. The book is fun to read, but it may be hard for someone younger to fully understand what is happening throughout the book.
January 24, 2019
This is my favorite SE Hinton novel.
I remember reading 'Taming the Star Runner' in middle school, when most kids encounter Hinton, but while I loved her other four, I didn't understand THIS novel. Why was it in third person? What was the point of the horse? What did any of this have to do with the world Hinton created in her other books?
Now that I'm a grown-ass librarian, I understand it. The third-person narration gives us Travis as the classic Hinton protagonist, but his guardian, Ken, embodies all of the reflection of an older greaser: lamenting his failed marriage, piecing together a life after reckless youth, asking about fate versus will. Meanwhile, Travis himself spends the book coming into his own as the debut author of a novel strikingly similar to The Outsiders.
...As her final YA book, this is Hinton reflecting on her own life, career, and decisions.
She's asking, what of her life was her own making, and what was destined to happen?
It ends up heartbreakingly poignant that Travis ends the story about to type up his second novel, not only because it bookends Hinton's YA novels ino echoing Ponyboy's ending, but ALSO because when Hinton began writing That Was Then, This Is Now (her sophomore title), she had matured, and her book showed the growth of someone who knows consequences and reality. Hinton was like her greaser characters in her first novel, and she was an adult writing the greaser-esque heroes of 'Rumble Fish' and 'Tex'. With 'Taming the Star Runner', the maturity of Hinton's hero has caught up to the Hinton in reality, and with that, her career writing young people comes to a close. You feel that she herself has resolved the questions asked across five books.
Hell, the fate of the Star Runner itself, and the implications of its relationship to Travis and Casey, much less to Ken and adulthood, are so complex that any middle-schooler is easily forgiven for missing it.
Re-reading 'Taming the Star Runner' as an adult had me in conversation with my younger self, just as Hinton is with herself in these pages. It's quick, it's profound, and it's a great start to my reading in 2019. =)
I remember reading 'Taming the Star Runner' in middle school, when most kids encounter Hinton, but while I loved her other four, I didn't understand THIS novel. Why was it in third person? What was the point of the horse? What did any of this have to do with the world Hinton created in her other books?
Now that I'm a grown-ass librarian, I understand it. The third-person narration gives us Travis as the classic Hinton protagonist, but his guardian, Ken, embodies all of the reflection of an older greaser: lamenting his failed marriage, piecing together a life after reckless youth, asking about fate versus will. Meanwhile, Travis himself spends the book coming into his own as the debut author of a novel strikingly similar to The Outsiders.
...As her final YA book, this is Hinton reflecting on her own life, career, and decisions.
She's asking, what of her life was her own making, and what was destined to happen?
It ends up heartbreakingly poignant that Travis ends the story about to type up his second novel, not only because it bookends Hinton's YA novels ino echoing Ponyboy's ending, but ALSO because when Hinton began writing That Was Then, This Is Now (her sophomore title), she had matured, and her book showed the growth of someone who knows consequences and reality. Hinton was like her greaser characters in her first novel, and she was an adult writing the greaser-esque heroes of 'Rumble Fish' and 'Tex'. With 'Taming the Star Runner', the maturity of Hinton's hero has caught up to the Hinton in reality, and with that, her career writing young people comes to a close. You feel that she herself has resolved the questions asked across five books.
Hell, the fate of the Star Runner itself, and the implications of its relationship to Travis and Casey, much less to Ken and adulthood, are so complex that any middle-schooler is easily forgiven for missing it.
Re-reading 'Taming the Star Runner' as an adult had me in conversation with my younger self, just as Hinton is with herself in these pages. It's quick, it's profound, and it's a great start to my reading in 2019. =)
October 2, 2022
Either 2.5 stars rounded up to three, or three whole stars, I'm not sure.
This started out strong as a four+ star read, but it quickly began to weaken. It was just a tad at first, but the stars really started falling off in the last 50 pages. I got the sense Hinton had a stack of trunk stories and she tried to cram them all together in this book. A lot of them went nowhere, and I'm afraid the effort as a whole just fell kind of flat. Is this about Travis being a badass but not really being as badassy as he thinks he is? Is it about Travis the writer? Is it about equestrian shows? (There were two whole chapters about that, each filled with technical information about jumps, runs, etc.) Is it about... Just what the hell is it about? I really don't know. A book can have multiple stories and themes going on at the same time, but they should be woven together better. This was a jumbled mess by the end. Still, I liked it most of the time, and I never wanted to put it down, so there's that. I might even reread it one day.
This was a little grittier than Hinton's previous young adult offerings, at least concerning profanity. I guess since she was an established author she was able to slip in a "bullshit" and "Goddam" every now and then and get away with it. Part of this is autobiographical and shows Hinton's experiences in getting The Outsiders published, including how she had to remove profanity from it. I know Hinton has a thing for horses, and so that's in here as well. The problem is the two don't gel well, nor did the other things she included. I think each taken by itself would've made for better short stories.
Then there's the problem with Travis. I liked him, but he wasn't a believable character. He was the too-cool-for-you kid with the attitude to match, and yet he was also a writer and had all the attendant insecurities, and I'm sorry, but that just ain't cool, at least not in the way Hinton was trying to present it. I think part of the problem is that she was too far removed from her teenage years when she wrote this. She was about 40 years old when it was published. (I'm guessing she was 37 when she started it because that's how old Travis' uncle was, and she seems to like that kind of parallel in her works, but I could be wrong).
She also still doesn't have a firm grasp on how boys think and behave. Travis is straight, but he spends an awful lot of time focusing on himself and paying attention to how attractive other dudes are. Don't get me wrong, a lot of teenage guys make sure they look good, comb their hair and style their clothes to match whatever the current fashion is for their group, but not at the same level a girl would. Take this section on page five as an example:
Enough of that. I just couldn't believe Travis was a real person due to that and a few other things, such as him being a bad ass but also falling apart emotionally at the drop of a hat, or doing dorky things like writing. I couldn't buy both of those being in the same character. Those would battle with each other, and one would have to win out. I know the cool kid thing was kind of a front, but at the same time it wasn't. Speaking of characters, I also had a hard time accepting the child Christopher who I assume was supposed to be a toddler, but he acted like an elementary age kid (especially with how he talked) except when he didn't.
Like I said before, I enjoyed reading this, but it definitely has its problems, and I think it's the weakest of Hinton's five young adult novels. If you like the others, you'll probably like this one too, but probably not as much.
Since I'm done with these, I reckon this is as good place as any to corral all of my reviews for my own reference:
The Outsiders
That Was Then, This Is Now
Rumble Fish
Tex
This started out strong as a four+ star read, but it quickly began to weaken. It was just a tad at first, but the stars really started falling off in the last 50 pages. I got the sense Hinton had a stack of trunk stories and she tried to cram them all together in this book. A lot of them went nowhere, and I'm afraid the effort as a whole just fell kind of flat. Is this about Travis being a badass but not really being as badassy as he thinks he is? Is it about Travis the writer? Is it about equestrian shows? (There were two whole chapters about that, each filled with technical information about jumps, runs, etc.) Is it about... Just what the hell is it about? I really don't know. A book can have multiple stories and themes going on at the same time, but they should be woven together better. This was a jumbled mess by the end. Still, I liked it most of the time, and I never wanted to put it down, so there's that. I might even reread it one day.
This was a little grittier than Hinton's previous young adult offerings, at least concerning profanity. I guess since she was an established author she was able to slip in a "bullshit" and "Goddam" every now and then and get away with it. Part of this is autobiographical and shows Hinton's experiences in getting The Outsiders published, including how she had to remove profanity from it. I know Hinton has a thing for horses, and so that's in here as well. The problem is the two don't gel well, nor did the other things she included. I think each taken by itself would've made for better short stories.
Then there's the problem with Travis. I liked him, but he wasn't a believable character. He was the too-cool-for-you kid with the attitude to match, and yet he was also a writer and had all the attendant insecurities, and I'm sorry, but that just ain't cool, at least not in the way Hinton was trying to present it. I think part of the problem is that she was too far removed from her teenage years when she wrote this. She was about 40 years old when it was published. (I'm guessing she was 37 when she started it because that's how old Travis' uncle was, and she seems to like that kind of parallel in her works, but I could be wrong).
She also still doesn't have a firm grasp on how boys think and behave. Travis is straight, but he spends an awful lot of time focusing on himself and paying attention to how attractive other dudes are. Don't get me wrong, a lot of teenage guys make sure they look good, comb their hair and style their clothes to match whatever the current fashion is for their group, but not at the same level a girl would. Take this section on page five as an example:
Travis combed his hair, staring into the mirror with fixed concentration. He was good-looking. Probably one of the best-looking guys in the school. He had dark brown hair, not so long that he looked like one of the dopers, not so short that he looked like one of the straights, the student-council preppies. Five foot eight. Not bad for sixteen, and by the size of his hands and feet he hadn't stopped growing yet. Good eyes. Great eyes, actually. Gray-green and as cold as the Irish sea. He had read a book about F. Scott Fitzgerald once, and it said he had eyes as cold as the Irish sea. Travis liked that. He secretly liked his eyelashes, too, a black fringe, as long as a girl's. He had a good build, long-boned and lean and flat-stomached, and that was the reason he liked tight T-shirts. Kirk was taller, and had broad shoulders, but Travis thought his own build was as good as any in the school. A lot of girls thought so. A lot.I'm pretty sure no man ever wrote a paragraph like that first one. That's the kind of attention to detail that only a woman would give to a male character. And since Travis is our narrator, such observations are a little out of character. Eyelashes? Guys discuss grooming habits with each other throughout life, but I don't ever recall discussing eyelashes with my friends at any age unless one fell out and got stuck in my eye. The girls, however, could talk about such things forever and a day, but we'd just zone out if they did it in front of us. Female grooming habits confuse men. Jeremy from the Zits comic strip explained it best several years ago (and Lord do I wish I could find this one online) when he said "Why is it girls spend so much time on their hair and their shoes when it's everything in between that we care about?" And while I'm on the subject, why is it that women will pluck their eyebrows out one hair at a time with tweezers, then grab a pencil and draw them right back in? What the hell is that all about?
"Maybe I'll get a tan," he said out loud. If he had a fault to find with his face, it was its paleness. But then, from what he read, Fitzgerald had never tanned either.
"Huh?" Joe said. He never spent as much time looking in mirrors as Travis did, being one olive-brown color all over, hair, eyes, and skin, and inclined to pudginess.
Enough of that. I just couldn't believe Travis was a real person due to that and a few other things, such as him being a bad ass but also falling apart emotionally at the drop of a hat, or doing dorky things like writing. I couldn't buy both of those being in the same character. Those would battle with each other, and one would have to win out. I know the cool kid thing was kind of a front, but at the same time it wasn't. Speaking of characters, I also had a hard time accepting the child Christopher who I assume was supposed to be a toddler, but he acted like an elementary age kid (especially with how he talked) except when he didn't.
Like I said before, I enjoyed reading this, but it definitely has its problems, and I think it's the weakest of Hinton's five young adult novels. If you like the others, you'll probably like this one too, but probably not as much.
Since I'm done with these, I reckon this is as good place as any to corral all of my reviews for my own reference:
The Outsiders
That Was Then, This Is Now
Rumble Fish
Tex
November 30, 2021
5 stars for this booking being written by S. E. Hinton and for it being about a juvenile delinquent boy who is "not like other juvenile delinquent boys."
3 stars for the choppy writing and for the story.
All around a good time.
3 stars for the choppy writing and for the story.
All around a good time.
July 19, 2022
This was my least favorite of the S.E. Hinton collection.
Not to say it was bad (I rated it three stars, obviously). But it just didn't feel as meaningful as the others, and it didn't speak to me in the same way.
Maybe I should reread it?
Not to say it was bad (I rated it three stars, obviously). But it just didn't feel as meaningful as the others, and it didn't speak to me in the same way.
Maybe I should reread it?
March 27, 2015
This is my second favorite S.E. Hinton book, right after 'The Outsiders'. Other than the end chapter (which I found lackluster and odd), I really enjoyed reading this book.
August 29, 2024
The last book in my S.E. Hinton reading marathon. This was a bit of a hard one to rate, I really liked some parts but felt like the book could've been structured better overall. There were a few different plot threads that we had going but none that felt properly developed.
Personally, I would've loved to read about just Travis and his struggles with identity and fitting in, and maybe more about him bonding with Ken. The romance, the horse, the book publishing thing, and then that wacky out-of-the-blue storyline involving Joe felt a bit rushed and haphazard.
Personally, I would've loved to read about just Travis and his struggles with identity and fitting in, and maybe more about him bonding with Ken. The romance, the horse, the book publishing thing, and then that wacky out-of-the-blue storyline involving Joe felt a bit rushed and haphazard.
June 6, 2024
Welp, that's a wrap on the SE Hinton series. I'm honestly gonna miss reading them. But let's talk about this book. I honestly really did like it! Honestly, I hated the step-father, too. It's probably my second favorite to The Outsiders. I just really loved the plot of the story. I was a little nervous about reading a horse book, but honestly, it was the best!!
January 29, 2019
It was amazing, an awesome book that I would recommend to everybody.
July 27, 2024
Loved it! I could really relate. I like this one better than Tex.
January 7, 2025
“what if—could still make travis sick with dread”
i LOVE travis. one of best, most realistic characters in ya fiction.
i LOVE travis. one of best, most realistic characters in ya fiction.
March 12, 2025
Audiobook. Performance was great. Characters were very engaging. The ending sucked. Because there was no conclusion.
August 11, 2025
3rd favorite S. E. Hinton book 😎
December 21, 2019
All of the S.E Hinton books that I have read I have found them interesting. Although these books are short they make it feel like it’s real. Everything started because Travis attempted to murder his Stepdad Stan. Travis is sent to his uncles ranch because of the incident that had just happened. Travis never liked to ask Stan for anything because Stan would feel like he owns him and would remind him what he bought for Travis. Just like Stan would do this to Travis’s mom. I liked how Travis had a chance to publish his book and how happy he was and how his uncle was so happy for him. I thought that Casey and Travis were going to end up together but that did not happened. This book showed the everyday life of Travis.
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