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changing. However, the two novels also assert that Byron and Conor’s traumas, with the
resulting harsh transitions into adulthood, are natural. Hinton and Ness detail this
perspective by directly undermining the traditional view of trauma’s destructive and
permanent nature. Research also supports this untraditional, optimistic view of the
healing possible from trauma, as stated in the Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment &
Trauma: “When people get what they need, even after sustaining profound trauma in
childhood and adolescence, long-term negative outcomes can be avoided and people can
heal” (Todahl). This uncommon and detailed view of trauma is especially emphasized in
the conclusion of Byron and Conor’s narratives.

While Byron’s tale ends pessimistically, one passage describes Byron’s growth:
“I had learned something from everyone [the people of his life], and I didn’t seem to be
the same person I had been last year” (Hinton 155). Similarly, Conor’s tale ends with the
catastrophic loss of his mother, and yet there is optimism: “It [his mother’s death] would
be terrible. It would be beyond terrible. But he’d survive” (Ness 90). Hinton and Ness
argue against the structured, negative concept of trauma by showing trauma as
progressive, rather than solely destructive. Though changed forever by loss, Byron’s and
Connor’s transitions into adulthood are inevitable; evidenced by Byron’s notably natural
change. Sooner or later, the darkness and ambiguity of adulthood would find Byron and
Conor. The pair could never escape trauma, because growing from adolescent to adult is
paired with trauma and the resulting lessons on reality. The knowledge the protagonists
learn allows the pair to survive their future as adults, exemplified in the conclusion of
Conor’s narrative.

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