I'm A Good Judge Of

I Was Desperate For Something To Read That Dealt Realistically With Teenage Life, And I Thought Others Might Be, Too.

Things Were Rough All Over, But It Was Better That Way. That Way You Could Tell The Other Guy Was Human Too.

Suddenly It Wasn't Only A Personal Thing To Me. I Could Picture Hundreds And Hundreds Of Boys Living On The Wrong Sides Of Cities, Boys With Black Eyes Who Jumped At Their Own Shadows. Hundreds Of Boys Who Maybe Watched Sunsets And Looked At Stars And Ached For Something Better. I Could See Boys Going Down Under Street Lights Because They Were Mean And Tough And Hated The World, And It Was Too Late To Tell Them That There Was Still Good In It, And They Wouldn't Believe You If You Did.

You Still Have A Lot Of Time To Make Yourself Be What You Want. There's Still Lots Of Good In The World. Tell Dally. I Don't Think He Knows.

You Know A Guy A Longtime, And I Mean Really Know Him, You Don't Get Used To The Idea That He's Dead Just Overnight.