The Outsiders is the original teenage rebel story that denotes a series of events that occur between two rival gangs, the Socials and the Greasers, which represent the divide and conflict between the rich and poor; from the perspective of fourteen-year-old protagonist, PonyBoy. I wanted the book cover to reflect the mature nature of the book, and feature the eerie and dark presence it has.

The events occur in autumn and the design for the book cover depicts a catalytic moment in the novel that occurs in a park, where a murder occurs, and the author specifically highlights the presence of elm trees at night.  Hence why I decide to hand generate a branch like title for the cover.  The absence of leaves on the branch reflects the autumnal season, but the three remaining leaves on the cover reflect PonyBoy and his two brothers, with the stray leaf that is falling representing the protagonist, as he has strayed from his brothers from being affiliated with a gang related event. Burnt orange is the dominant colour of the cover, which represents the fire that occurs in the latter part of the book. 

Closer view of the typographic detail.