THE OUTSIDERS PROJECT

By Vidita Nanda

Declaration
I hereby declare that the project work entitled
the outsiders project submitted to Pearl Academy, is a record of an original work done by
me under the guidance of Ms. Usha Iyer and
Ms. Shweta Mahopatra and this project work has not performed the basis for the award of
any Degree or diploma/ associateship/fellowship and similar project if any.

References
www.penguindesignentries.co.uk
www.yaprojectoutsiders.blogspot.in
www.paperdarts.org
www.pastemagazine.com
www.bookcoverarchive.com
www.talkingcovers.com

Dedication
I dedicate this book to my grandfather who always told us in not so many
words to work and work through his many tales of battle with fortune.
While those glorious times hed say it doesnt help if the land is fertile, it
pays if one sows the seed, waters and nurtures it. Else the fertile land is
bound to become barren sooner of or later.

INDEX
Chapter 1 Existing Book Cover
Analysis

07

Chapter 2 Brief

15

Chapter 3 Research

19

Chapter 4 Explorations

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CHAPTER 1

Existing Book Cover Analysis

Book covers the one second visual summary of the most important element
from the book. This makes it the most critical point of communication between
the authors team and the readers. This past year there have been uncountable
books published. Since analyzing all the books published in 2012-2013 is
a never ending process , the following are some of the magnificent covers
published in 2012-13.

The Village by Nikita Lalvani

Threats by Amelia Gray

Cover by: Petra Borner

The hand drawn illustrations work
really well with beige background.
The lady grabs ones attention not
just because she is holding a huge
knife casually but also because she is
very brightly colored than the rest of
the cover. She is also placed dangerously close to the optic center which
gives it visual importance referencing
to the story.

Cover by: Charlotte Stick

the cover perfectly evokes the
emotions of the book. the destroyed
flowers show cruelty and destructon
of innocense. the type in wood also
displays a nutural, horrifieing and yet
a peice of marvel.

Brave genius by
Sean B. Carroll
Cover by: Elena
Giavaldi

Mr.
Penumbras
24 hour
book store
by Robin
Sloan

The cover is
minimalistic
and simple.
Since the book
talks about
the noble
prize winning
scientist and philosopher, the cover
also consists of the faces of the two.
The faces of the scientist and the
philosopher are divided in halves
and placed on either side of the space,
implying the completion of the one
conventional face but yet poles apart.
The red and blue hint text hint
the colors of the French flag.
The signature of Albert Camus
suggests the book is not a text book
nevertheless the equation hints the
scientific quality of the book.

Cover by:
Rodrigo
Corral

The title
itself is very
geometrically
as well as
gracefully portrayed. Mr. Penumbras
24 hour book store has a good cover
with a stunning reasons. For those
unaware the book analyzes the crack
in the print industry that is being
caused by the digital boom. This book
is not only good to read but to own as
the cover is glow in the dark. And one
certainly does not get that facility
over the e-books.
The
Luminaries
by Eleanor
Catton
Cover by:
Jenny Grigg

All men
are liars
by Alberto
Manguel
Cover
by: Jason
Booher

The
luminaries
-an award
winning
novel is
set in the
nineteenth
century, New Zealand. The cover
distinctly suggests the lunar cycle
which blends very well with the title.
The portrait used is an glass eyed
lady portraying Anna- the lead nigh
in the center of events is marvelous
and get the emotion the nineteenth
century out. The cover used for
the UK pulished the luminaries is
different than the US published which
is displayed in this document.

The novel is
a series of
interviews
regarding
the death of
Alejandro
Bevilacqua, a brilliant, infuriatingly
elusive South American writer and
author of the masterpiece, In Praise
of Lying. The yellow ribbon used
as a platform for the text, which
covers the face the man in question.
This is an appropriate metaphor as
the interviewee think they know
Alejandro but as events turn out it is
reveled that he was a person very few
people under stood.

A Hologram for the King by Dave

Eggers
Cover by: Jessica Hische

Below by Meg McKinlay

Cover by: Matt Roeser

The flame alphabet by Ben Marcus

Cover by: Peter Mendelsund

She rises by Kate Worsley

Cover by: Holly Macdonald

As a lover of the exquisite physicality

of print books, I couldnt help but gasp
at the thick, stunning foil-stamped
typographic cover with a blind-deboss
in gold ink. It has a old school look to
it and it looks classic and mordern at
the same time. it does not peculierly
suggest the plot of the novel but it is so
beautiful and tactile that it fulfils the
purpose.

The cover of this book is more

decorative than explanatory, but it
is engagingly beautiful. The vibrant
colors are hauntingly astonishing
and they well illustrate the title.
It deliciously creepy when you
remember that the construction paper
pattern hints at the novels sea of
lethal children. The cover genuinely
complements the unique plot of the
book.

The cover is reveling and yet full of

suspense. The green tone used is
mysterious. The novel revolves around
a town that has drowned with a lot of
secrets. which is clearly potrayed on
the cover with the protagonist of the
novel who is linked to all the evets that
occur. the cover allows an opportunity
to look beneath the surface and
discover what lies below.

A love story set in the mid-eighteenth

century is about a ladies maid working
for a wealthy but haughty young
mistress in Harwich. This beautiful
jacket achieves a classic wood-cutstyle elegance but with a distinctly
contemporary twist. The waves of
sea and hair twist around each other
giving a feel of energy and dynamism,
perfectly offset by the simple, sparse
use of colour.

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11

The Marlowe Papers by Ros Barber

Cover by: John Contino

The simplicity of the design, the drawn lettering

on the spine, the hand-crafted feel, the lettering
on the back cover quoting Marlowe is exquisite
example of typography. The post-press has been
utilized to its maximum capacity. The coper
foiling and the debossing is beautifully placed and
all the lettering which John Contino is known for
is just sublime.

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Virginia Wolf by Kyo Maclear

Cover by: Isabelle Arsenault

Not just the cover but the whole book is illustrated and
with elegance. the chilrens book is about two sisters one
of whom is in a wolfy mood, and the other is creating the
perfect place for her by painting the walls and bring them to
life. The drama of taming a bad mood is familiar territory
for most young readers. Isabelle Arsenaults illustrations are
inviting and original, moving from subdued blues and greys
to brilliant colour as the imaginary world of Bloomsberry
comes to life.

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14

CHAPTER 2

Brief
The project (for future reference P3) in semester six of BA hon. Communication
design is The penguin/puffin design awards. Where the contestant is suppose to
redesign an cover for an existing book specified.
The project is to design a whole new cover look for The Outsiders, in order to
bring this classic to a new generation of readers, ensuring that this timeless story
remains an integral part of every teenagers bookshelf.
Although the competition requires the competitors to make a soft bound book
cover the project for academic proposes demands the students make a hard
bound book jacket with flaps for the book using the template provided by the
award website
The book covers must hold a concepts to back them up. Should be as relevant
as can be. Besides the book cover there are other promotional items that should
accompany it. Postcards to distribute with more information about the book.
Posters or banners for events, Bookplates stickers that can be used to add
personalized comments and share with readers (by the author/publisher)
Bookmarks, Printed invitations to in person events, Branded address labels for
shipping books, Branded letterhead and stationary for notes to include with
books.
The summary of the book
Ponyboy Curtis belongs to a proletariat group of Oklahoma youths who call
themselves greasers because of their oily long hair. Walking home from a movie,
Ponyboy is attacked by a group of Socs, (the greasers rivals, who are upper-class
youths from the West Side of town.) The Socs, short for Socials, gang up on Ponyboy
and threaten to slit his throat. A group of greasers comes and chases the bullies
away, saving Ponyboy. Ponyboys rescuers include his brother Sodapop, a charming,
handsome high-school dropout, and Darry, Ponyboys oldest brother (Darry
assumed responsibility for his brothers when their parents were killed in a car
crash). The rest of the greasers who come to Ponyboys rescue are Johnny, a sensitive
sixteen-year-old; Dally, a hardened street hood with a long criminal record; Steve,
Sodapops best friend; and Two-Bit, the oldest and funniest group member.

15

The next night, Ponyboy and Johnny go to a movie with

Dally. They sit behind a pair of attractive Soc girls. Dally flirts
with the girls obnoxiously. After Johnny tells Dally to stop
harassing the Soc girls, Dally walks away. Johnny and Ponyboy
sit with the girls, who are named Cherry and Marcia, and
Ponyboy and Cherry discover that they have a lot in common.
Two-Bit arrives, and the three greasers begin to walk the Soc
girls to Two-Bits house so he can drive them home. On the
way to Two-Bits house, they run into Bob and Randy, the girls
drunken boyfriends. The girls must leave with their boyfriends
in order to prevent a fight between the Socs and the greasers.
Ponyboy is late getting home, and his brother Darry is furious
with him. Sick of Darrys constant scrutiny and criticism,
Ponyboy yells at Darry. The brothers begin to fight, and Darry
slaps Ponyboy across the face. Ponyboy flees, determined to
run away. He finds Johnny, and the two boys heads for the
park. There they encounter Bob and Randy with a group
of Soc boys. The Socs attack Johnny and Ponyboy, and
one of them holds Ponyboys head under the frigid water
of a fountain until Ponyboy blacks out. Ponyboy regains
consciousness to find himself lying on the ground. He is next
to Johnnyand next to Bobs corpse. Johnny tells Ponyboy
that he (Johnny) killed Bob because the Socs were going to
drown Ponyboy and beat up Johnny.
Desperate and terrified, Ponyboy and Johnny hurry to find
Dally Winston, the one person they think might be able to
help them. Dally gives them a gun and some money and sends
them to an abandoned church near the neighboring town of
Windrixville. They hide out in the church for a week, cutting
and dying their hair to disguise themselves, reading Gone
with the Wind aloud, and discussing poetry. After several
days, Dally comes to check on Ponyboy andJohnny. He tells
the boys that, since Bobs death, tensions between the greasers
and the Socs have escalated. A rumble is to take place the next
night to settle matters. He says that Cherry, who feels partially
responsible for Bobs death, has been acting as a spy for the
greasers. Johnny shocks Dally by declaring his intention to go
back and turn himself in.
Dally agrees to drive Ponyboy and Johnny back home.
However, as the boys leave, they notice that the abandoned
church where Ponyboy and Johnny have been staying has
caught fire. They discover that a group of schoolchildren has
wandered inside. Ponyboy and Johnny rush into the inferno
to save the children. Just as they get the last child through the
window, the roof caves in, and Ponyboy blacks out. He regains

16

consciousness in an ambulance. At the hospital, he is diagnosed

with minor burns and bruises. Dally is not badly hurt either, but
Johnnys back was broken by the falling roof, and he is in critical
condition. Darry and Sodapop come to get Ponyboy, and Darry
and Ponyboy make up. The following morning, the newspapers
proclaim Ponyboy and Johnny heroes. They also report that,
because of Bobs death, Johnny will be charged with manslaughter.
Finally, the papers also state that both Ponyboy and Johnny will
have to go to juvenile court so that a judge can decide if they
should be sent to a boys home.
Ponyboy and Two-Bit go to get a Coke and run into Randy. Randy
tells Ponyboy that he is sick of all the fighting and does not plan
to go to the rumble that night. When Ponyboy and Two-Bit visit
Johnny in the hospital, Johnny seems weak. He asks Ponyboy for
a new copy of Gone with the Wind. During their visit with Dally,
Ponyboy and Two-Bit notice that Dally is much stronger than
Johnny. Dally asks to borrow Two-Bits black-handled switchblade.
On the way home, Two-Bit and Ponyboy see Cherry. She refuses
to visit Johnny because he has killed Bob, and Ponyboy calls her a
traitor. When she explains herself, he relents.
At the rumble, the greasers defeat the Socs. Dally shows up just
in time for the fight; he has escaped from the hospital. After the
fight, Ponyboy and Dally hurry back to see Johnny and find that
he is dying. When Johnny dies, Dally loses control and runs from
the room in a frenzy. Ponyboy stumbles home late that night,
feeling dazed and disoriented. He tells the others of Johnnys death.
Dally calls to say that he has robbed a grocery store and the cops
are looking for him. The greasers hurry to find him, but they are
too late. Dally raises a gun to the police and they gun him down.
Overwhelmed, Ponyboy passes out.
Ponyboy wakes up in bed at home. He has suffered a concussion
from a kick to the head at the rumble and has been delirious in
bed for several days. When he is well, he attends his hearing,
where the judge treats him kindly and acquits him of responsibility
for Bobs death. The court rules that Ponyboy will be allowed to
remain at home with Darry. For a time, Ponyboy feels listless
and empty. His grades slip, he feels hostile to Darry, and he loses
his appetite. At last, Sodapop tells Ponyboy that he (Sodapop) is
angry and frustrated because of the tension at home. He tearfully
asks that Ponyboy and Darry stop fighting. Finally understanding
the value of his family, Ponyboy agrees not to fight with Darry
anymore. He finds that for the first time he can remember Dallys
and Johnnys deaths without pain or denial. He decides to tell their
story and begins writing a term paper for his English class, which
turns out to be the novel itself.

17

18

CHAPTER 3

Research
About the author:
S E Hinton wrote the book at a very tender age of fifteen. The inspiration for
the characters and the scenario of the book were inspired by non fictitious
individuals and stereotyping them because of where the stayed.
The outsiders is a very popular novel and has been published by numerous
publication houses over the years. Although some times the target is varies but
for the most part it is a young adult novel targeting adolescents. The covers
moreover shows that. Besides the audience the novel was for a brief moment
used for education purposes but because of the constant portrayal of smoking
and violence, after a while the authority though best to discontinue to it to
part of the syllabus.

Some of the existing book covers consist of the following

The book coves are categorized according to the matter of the cover.
Page one: Five young men on the cover portraying the greasers or the five
protagonist i.e. Ponyboy, Sodapop, Darry, Dally and Johnny
Page two: the covers are ether showing three or four boys. Darry, sodapop
and ponyboy the four character being Johnny as he is next best anchor after
Ponyboy boy. Although in this particular page there are three visually equivalent covers with either the size of the font of the title changed.
Page three: On this page the similarity is visible without much effort. All four
covers consists of only one person portraying the greasers semiotic-ally the
pose of the models is a generally attitude of a greaser and not a character and
giving importance to all the characters.
Page four: could be officially named the odd-man out as any cover with not
matching similarity or unable form or fit into a group of category is on this
page. Out of all the covers penitents for mass-production the parrot green is
the most different and the audience has also changed from a young adult to a
younger individual. Another cover that is likely to grab attention is the red and
black cover but in my opinion it dose not complement the plot of the story.

19

Published October 1968 by

Laurel-Leaf Books or Dell
Publishing

Published November 1989

by Dell Publishing

Published August
2001 by Puffin
Books

Published October
1971 by Dell
Publishing

20

Published April 1967 by

Viking Juvenile

Published 1972 by Harper

Collins

Published March 2005 by

Thorndike Press

Published November 1997 by

Speak Publication

21

Published April 2006 by

Speak

Published November 1997 by

Speak

Published April 2009 by

Penguin Books

Published May 2006 by

Penguin Classics

22

Published August 1984 by

Laurel-Leaf Books

Published July 1996 by

Heinemann

educational edition
Published September 2007 by
Viking Juvenile

23

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CHAPTER 4

Explorations

After making a mind map and shortlisting that to form a list of attributes to describe the novel. Once that was done assigning color to each atributes was next.
Brotherhood

??

Frustration

Mud brown

Insecure

Brown black

Alienated

Grey

Real True mirror of truth White/light grey

Although the attributes for all three mood-board would be same, but i had a an
early stage made my mind on the three different ideas and my concepts would
change with my idea.
when it comes to mood boards it is essentiall that the composition be given
a thought. different people work in a different manner, some like to see what
matierial they have and then start placing it with the adding and subtracting elements as and where nessesary. others think about the composition and then colect matter and raid all souces for visualls and draw whatever cannot be sourced
is created. there is no wrong way of doing this as long as the mood is created.

25

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27

On the previous page

When the mood board was started I wanted to restrict

myself to images taken from a printed source. A
conventional way of making a mood board. A mood board
is not only to evoke the feeling of the subject. Is very visual
forual and should induce the hierarchy of elements.
The prison bars is used to show the frustration caused due to
being cast to a particular side of town. The mind is what the
brain is a quote thats used although it was used at a corner
attempting to not attract a lot of attention but a hint and to
create a visual flow. The quite was also used to show to the
helplessness of the socials. To further break it down to those
who do not understand. The mind is figuratively used as will
under the influence of circumstance and the brain is used as
a metaphor for actions of the mind controlling it.

Image on the next

In the second mood board i decided to experiment with

brighter colors and maintain the metaphorical darkness of
the novel. In this mood board instead of using the attributes
I opted to use events as I thought that would better conjure
the empathy. I also tried to create some layers, as i thought
you read the book with every turning page one would some
thing new and uncertain about the characters. The Blood
and the knife do look completely from the book.

28

29

30

31

On the previous page

At an attempt of making something absolutely different

than two done before. I wanted to use materials or rather
textures. The aim was to make a texture mood board so
that one can close there eyes feel the textures and that
itself would create the mood of the novel. in spite of the
textures working to a 40% level, visually it did not look like
a part of any thing and the colours did not flow. this one
according to me did not work.

Explorations

while looking at my options for the graphics inspired by the

mood boards i the second mood board evocked the aura of the
story and was yet not gloomy. The colors stood out and served
the propose.
So i started to explore how the fire and the colors. Since i thought
the colors were a little too bright i wanted it to be a tad bit dull.
In the mood board i had used pre-dyed construction paper.
And since i could not obtain the color that i desired i decided to
paint. Because I was aiming for dull packaging paper or butchers
paper has a different absorbing property than cartridge sheets i
choose to use that as background. I was also looking for a texture
that paint could not give me, as a result i sprinkled some salt
over the wet wash and the crystals collected water molecules
and on drying gave a unique texture of a building fire. Which
was perfect. I also then tried the same technique on pre-dyed
construction paper. the results were different and pleasent.

32

Experimentation with the pre-dyed salt treated constuction paper fire

33

To further visualize the burning

church i prepared a basic silhouette
of a church using basic shapes
and just like sunset photos with a
bright light at the back all you can
see is a silhouette. Therefore but
just the outline was to obtuse so i
gave it traditional church windows,
many churches have. Although i
was pleased with the way it turned
out, it looked like a horror novel
cover which it was not so.
Hence i went back to the drawing
board.

34

35

Here i was considering making a

composition containing most of the
important elements in the novel.
Pocket knife smoke from the cigarette
and fire in the building. But soon
realized that it might not be such a
bright idea.

36

This was a fairly literal depiction n of the scene just before

Ponyboy and Johnny come out
as heroes from fugitives.
A rough idea but very literal so
i tried to go on a metaphorical
level.

37

Although i was not on square one i

was not far from there. I went back to
mood boards and their feed back from
various individuals.
The first mood board has a heard of
bulls. And my mentor had suggested
the look tame not mellow with the
character and i thought of wolves. Run
in packs and when alone are miserable.
So i further started on a tangent of
wolves and the outsiders.
A wolf on the cover of a adolescent
book would be lastly misleading. On
the other hand i was attempting to
make a cartoon face for depicting the
greasers, as i thought it would break the
monotony.

38

original describes something that is new, ie an original idea, or it can relate to

something that has stood the test of time, ie an original stone wall.
unique usually refers to something that is either one of a kind or unusual.
i looked at the existing covers certain elements were not overly exploited, and
would look cliched on the cover. Aiators and rings blood. Blood would also be a
bit dark for the genere.

39

This is my process of the formation of the silhouette of johnny. as i was exploring i was
initially looking to depict ponyboy on the cover but after a discussion in class i released
that i was going on a tangent with the wolf metaphor. And then wanted to make it relevant
to the book and not make it look a like a teenage werewolf novel.
The wolf also symbolized the primal animal instinct of the boys, the instinct is not to hurt
or be scared but to survive and by nature an organism will attack only when senses fear.
Fear is what drove Johnny to stab Bob. Bob who has previously hurt Johnny to an extent
of death, and is referred to in the book as the kid with many rings.

40

Although i did not want to create a sense

of horror on the cover misleading the
audience but oppression as that is best
word to describe it .

41

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