KING OF THE MILD FRONTIER: AN ILL-ADVISED AUTOBIOGRAPHY by Chris Crutcher

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Crutcher, Chris. King of the Mild Frontier: An Ill-Advised Autobiography. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books, 2003. ISBN 0060502495

PLOT SUMMARY

Have you ever wondered how an author came to write about that subject? Or how much of a story is made up in the author's mind and how much is real (from somewhere)? Chris Crutcher does a terrific job of answering these questions through his autobiography, King of the Mild Frontier: An Ill-Advised Autobiography. Crutcher relays stories from his childhood and relates those stories to the books he has written. Crutcher writes very humorous accounts of the various scenes from childhood which represent the man and writer he later became.
"Memorable Moments" so to speak. From stories of his brother's manipulation of each situation to gain the desired results for himself and humiliation and punishment for Chris to stories of Chris' parents and Grandparents, the book is full of surprises which make beg to be shared with others.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Crutcher gives biographical writing a new style and a new audience in King of the Mild Frontier: An Ill-Advised Autobiography. Not your typical author should come from not your typical boyhood and this book is a celebration of that boyhood. There are times that the reader laughs so hard that tears are streaming down your face. There are times you want to cry from the experiences the boy endured. However great the stories are, the best part of the book is the way Crutcher allows the reader a sneak peek inside his mind to see how his childhood influenced his later novels. Boys and girls alike can relate to the tales told throughout the book. Each chapter represents a different story culminating with the use of the story in his writings. I highly recommend this book for everyone, young and old alike.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

Horn Book Guide (October 1, 2003) "Novelist and short story writer Crutcher has discovered his most effective voice in this collection of episodic, autobiographical essays. Most of the stories serve as introductions to his meditations on such subjects as anger or heroism or religion or cruelty--themes that inform all his work. Crutcher concludes that life gives him "a rich pool for stories"; he, in turn, shares that gift with readers."

Booklist (April 15, 2003) "Like his novels, Crutcher's autobiography is full of heartbreak, poignancy, and hilarity. Candid and casual, Crutcher shares stories from his childhood and adolescence in Cascade, Idaho. Reminiscences of some of his youthful rites of passage are laugh-out-loud funny, such as his humiliating initiation into his high-school athletic club. On a more serious note, he discusses his occasionally rocky relationships with his parents and siblings. He talks openly about his struggles with a bad temper that constantly got him into trouble, how he came to terms with questions about God, how he confronted intolerance, and how he found his own place in the world. He also shares several painful glimpses into his work as a child and family therapist trying to help people heal some very broken lives. This honest, insightful, revealing autobiography is a joy to read. Crutcher's fans will relish this intimate glimpse of the author, and the book may win some new readers for his fiction."

Voice of Youth Advocates (June 1, 2003) "Already a favorite with young adults, Crutcher pens an autobiography of his youth that will find an easy audience in a genre that teachers and librarians sometimes find hard to sell. His stories about the anguish that was his childhood are both sad and funny. He suffers from being nearly three years younger than his brother, from living in a small town where invisibility is impossible, and from being totally unathletic in a school where everyone is expected to play. Through a series of vignettes, Crutcher lays bare many painful memories of his childhood, and readers see the source of some of his best stories and characters."