Presenting Chris Crutcher

Book excerpt: In a cogent style, Davis delineates the people and events shaping Crutcher's character and commitment to youth and examines each of the published works, including Crutcher's 1992 novel for adults, The Deep End. While assessing each work's plot, theme, ethical perspectives, and critical reception, Davis draws freely on a wealth of personal observations from Crutcher and on insights Davis himself has gained during their long association. Readers learn, for example, that Crutcher can do one hundred straight push-ups; that his outlook was sharply influenced by his maternal grandfather, who grew up an orphan; and that at Christmastime Crutcher asks friends to give him not gifts but money he can use to help his clients at one of Spokane's mental health centers.