About the Author

Chris Crutcher has written nine critically acclaimed novels, an autobiography, and two collections of short stories. Drawing on his experience as a family therapist and child protection specialist, Crutcher writes honestly about real issues facing teenagers today: making it through school, competing in sports, handling rejection and failure, and dealing with parents. He has won three lifetime achievement awards for the body of his work: the Margaret A. Edwards Award, the ALAN Award, and the NCTE National Intellectual Freedom Award. Chris Crutcher lives in Spokane, Washington.

Reviews

"Crutcher knows teen issues and how kids think and talk...he mixes poignancy and humor in just the right proportion to keep readers involved." - ALA Booklist"If the stereotype of the 'bonehead jock' is ever to be defeated, it will be at Crutcher's hands. Compelling enough to engage even the most sedentary readers." - Publishers Weekly"If the stereotype of the 'bonehead jock' is ever to be defeated, it will be at Crutcher's hands...compelling enough to engage even the most sedentary readers." - Publishers Weekly"Chris Crutcher changed everything for me. Here were these high school athletes, thinking and talking the way I did, working through real, serious problems, and figuring out what kind of people they wanted to be in this world." (in "12 Authors on the Banned Books They'll Never Forget" by Jared Reck, author of A Short History of the Girl Next Door) - Brightly

"A winning collection of stories...will speak to YAs, touch them deeply and introduce them to characters they'll want to know better." -- School Library Journal (starred review)"The characterizations are powerfully drawn, and the dialogue is quick and scorching." -- The Horn Book (starred review)"If the stereotype of the 'bonehead jock' is ever to be defeated, it will be at Crutcher's hands. Compelling enough to engage even the most sedentary readers." -- Publishers Weekly"An involving group of stories...thought-provoking and discussable." -- Kirkus"Crutcher knows teen issues and how kids think and talk...he mixes poignancy and humor in just the right proportion to keep readers involved." -- ALA Booklist"If the stereotype of the 'bonehead jock' is ever to be defeated, it will be at Crutcher's hands...compelling enough to engage even the most sedentary readers." -- Publishers Weekly

If the stereotype of the ``bonehead jock'' is ever to be defeated, it will be at Crutcher's hands. In these six short stories, he and his athlete protagonists take on such weighty issues as racism, homophobia, sexism and the teenager's essential task of coming to terms with his parents. At the same time the author makes the world of sports compelling enough to engage even the most sedentary readers. Three of the stories revolve around characters featured in Crutcher's The Crazy Horse Electric Game , including the memorable eccentric known as Telephone Man. Also starring in his own story is Lionel Serbousek, the orphaned artist and swimmer of Stotan! In the book's final tale, Louie Banks (from Running Loose ) is befriended by a young man with AIDS and must cope once again with the untimely death of a loved one. The stories' locales--mostly small towns in Montana and Idaho--are vividly evoked, and make a satisfying change from the well-known big cities and bland suburbs where so many YA novels are set. Ages 12-up. (Oct.)