This month we interview one of our own, acclaimed young adult author Chris Crutcher, who serves as our monthly advice columnist.
Bold, hard-hitting, and honest, Chris’s books never pretend to offer easy solutions to difficult problems. Popular with teens, Chris has been recognized through numerous awards that include the ALA’s Margaret A. Edwards Award for his ongoing devotion to young adults.
His popular books include Whale Talk, Stotan!, Chinese Handcuffs, and Ironman. Chris also contributes as a regular columnist to the Huffington Post.
His biography is available on our Ask An Expert page.
Q. How keen a reader were you as a child?
A. Not too. I didn’t read much at all in junior high and high school. Some adventure and biographical stuff in junior high, and a lot of sports magazines in high school. I did read To Kill a Mockingbird in high school and that pretty much saved me as a reader. When I was a grade schooler, I did read a lot. Adventure, sports.
Q. What were your favorite books growing up?
A. As a very young kid, Dr. Suess. Then Chip Hilton series, Hardy Boys. To Kill a Mockingbird in high school.
Q. What made you a keen reader (or are you)?
A. Interest. I discovered when people stopped making me read certain material, that there was a lot of material out there I wanted to read. Also, you can’t be a writer without being a reader.
Q. When did you decide you wanted to write books?
A. Probably somewhere in my twenties when I got interested in fiction and saw some of the great stuff out there: Vonnegut, Heller, Walker, Irving, Robbins, and on and on.
Q. How did your experiences as a psychologist and teacher affect how you think about reading and writing?
A. It taught me the power of story and that connection is healing.
Q. What’s your best advice to parents of teens and pre-teens who want to encourage their kids to read?
A. Back off the pressure. Talk about books you like; read books your kids might be interested in. Leave them lying around. Even when kids are being oppositional, they hear more than we think they hear, and they think about a lot of things. If they think there are answers to important (to them) questions in certain books, they’ll go to get those answers. AND as I always say, find books that are funny. People like to laugh.
Q. What do you enjoy most when you’re not reading and writing?
A. Running, biking, swimming, hanging out with interesting people. Making connections.
