Figure 1 – (Halls 2010)
Making Connections through
Chris Crutcher’s Work
Eric Fortune
EDTC 3771
MWF 9:00 – 9:50 AM
Senior English
Due: 10/20/11
Biography
Figure 2 - (Halls, 2011)
• Born on July 17, 1946 in Dayton Ohio.
• Author of fourteen books -- eleven novels, two short story collections
and an autobiography.
• Prior to his work as an author, he taught school in Washington and
California and acted as director of an Oakland alternative school for
nearly a decade.
• That academic history coupled with 25 years as a child and family
therapist specializing in abuse and neglect has infused his literary work
with realism and emotional heft.
• His signature blend of tragedy and comedy have made him a favorite
with teen and adult readers.
• He is also one of the most frequently banned authors in North America
-- a fact he considers an accomplishment, rather than a drawback.
Selected Works
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Running Loose, 1983
Stotan!, 1986
The Crazy Horse Electric Game, 1987
Chinese Handcuffs, 1989
Athletic Shorts: Six Short Stories, 1991
The Deep End, 1991
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes, 1993
Ironman, 1995
Whale Talk, 2001
King of the Mild Frontier, 2003
The Sledding Hill, 2005
Deadline, 2007
Figure 5- (Halls, 2011)
Why Chris Crutcher?
1. The characters he creates are real people.
2. His characters are the kids who walk the halls
of today’s schools and read at public libraries.
3. Crutcher’s stories urge kids to have courage
and to take responsibility for their lives, to
become everyday heroes who stand up and do
what is right.
4. His readers recognize themselves in his books,
and realize that somebody else might just
understand their crises after all.
Free Speech
A champion for free
speech, Chris Crutcher
continuously fights for
intellectual freedom. He
loudly proclaims the
rights of high school
students to feel visible
and to find and read the
books they need most, in
spite of censors. His
books are frequently
challenged and/or
banned.
Figure 6 - (Jenson, 2011), (Green Willow
Books, 2010)
Questions to consider
Dividing the class into two groups, we will have
one group argue against censorship under any
circumstances and the other argue that the desire
to protect students outweighs their First
Amendment right to receive information. Each
group needs to answer these questions: Who
determines what needs to be censored? Who
should judge what is appropriate?
Questions to consider
Select one of Chris Crutcher’s challenged books
and research the reasons that it was contested as
well as the final results of the challenge. Then
write a rationale for keeping the book on the
library shelf and in the classroom. We’ll read your
rationales to the class and then combine them in
a booklet. (Geye, 2006)
Questions to consider
Chris Crutcher is proud to have repeatedly made
the ALA’s annual list of top ten most frequently
challenged books. Discuss why Chris Crutcher
might be proud of this fact. Would it be better to
be universally loved? Why or why not?
Researched Analysis Paper
During this time that we’ve discussed Crutcher’s
work, we’ve seen how him touch upon many themes
while writing about kids who need to have courage
and to take responsibility for their lives, to become
everyday heroes who stand up and do what is right..
We’ve seen how censorship plays into how the
general public responds to his writing. You will write
a researched analysis paper on one of his novels we
have read and it will be include everything we have
learned during this time through our reading, note
taking, discussion, and research.
Credits
Geye, S. (2006, June). Guide to teaching challenged and banned books featuring the novels of chris crutcher.
http://www.teachervision.fen.com/tv/printables/harpercollins/challenged-banned-books_tg.pdf
Green Willow Books. (2010). Ask chris crutcher: censorship [Web].
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kccTXaLyi8
Halls, K. (2011). Author & consultant chris crutcher. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/
Halls, K. (Producer). (2010). Chris crutcher. [Web Photo]. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/
Halls, K. (Producer). (2011). Chris with students. [Web Photo]. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/
Halls, K. (Producer). (2011). Running loose. [Web Photo]. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/crutcher-books.html
Halls, K. (Producer). (2011). Staying fat for sarah byrnes. [Web Photo].
http://www.chriscrutcher.com/crutcher-books.html
Halls, K. (Producer). (2011). Deadline. [Web Photo]. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/crutcher-books.html
Hauschildt, P. (2008). Teaching the selected works of chris crutcher . Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.
Jenson, K. (Producer). (2011). Banned books week poster. [Web Photo]. http://www.chriscrutcher.com/extras.html