King of the Mild Frontier, an Ill-advised Autobiography / Chris Crutcher / 256 pages

In this autobiography, Chris Crutcher describes the forces in his life that molded and encouraged him to become a writer.  We learn many interesting, often humorous, events that provided characters, scenes, and themes that would appear later in his books.  He tells us why and how he writes for teens.  "Humans of any generation are more similar they are different...But all teens, then and now, are becoming and that is the connector.  They're watching and considering and wondering what happens next, finding their place in the universe, entertaining beliefs that will become guideposts for their thoughts and actions for the rest of their lives."  YA literature is often written to set examples for young people to follow.  Mr. Crutcher believes that the author should tell the truth as the author sees it. ' Language used should describe the world and make the characters real.  The reader should be treated with respect and the author must be willing to tell about the ruggedness of lives.  Anything less is far more disrespectful than the use of those really meaningless words in print."