Chris Crutcher is a literary icon in the field of young adult literature. In this book Gillis and Cole examine the life career and works of this young adult advocate. This volume opens with a neverbeforepublished comprehensive portrait of the authoramprsquos life gleaned from numerous conversations with Crutcher. The authors explore Crutcheramprsquos childhood his adolescent years his life as an adult and his career as a family counselor and examine how those experiences became fodder for his stories. The authors also discuss Crutcheramp39s encounters with censorship and his philosophical stance. Gillis and Cole also analyze Crutcheramprsquos novels short stories and novellas examining his literary craft and such social themes as bigotry identity sexuality relationships and lossampmdashthemes almost always positioned within a sports story.