"Crutcher knows his stuff, and he pumps adrenaline through the sports scenes while honestly acknowledging the personal struggles of his adolescent readers." The thread of truth in his fiction reminds us that heroes can come in any shape, color, ability or size, and friendship can bridge nearly any divide. "Crutcher's superior gifts as a storyteller and his background as a working therapist combine to make magic in Whale Talk. The book's shocking climax will force readers to re-examine their own values and may cause them to alter their perception of individuals pegged as 'losers.'" "Crutcher offers an unusual yet resonant mixture of black comedy and tragedy that lays bare the superficiality of the high school scene. himself is witty, self-assured, fearless, intelligent, and wise beyond his years." "Crutcher uses a broad brush in an undeniably robust and energetic story.T. A heartwrenching series of plot twists leads to an end in which goodness at least partially prevails." " uses well-constructed characters and quick pacing to examine how the sometimes cruel and abusive circumstances of life affect every link in the human chain.
But Crutcher (Ironman, 1995, etc) juggles the disparate elements of his plot with characteristic energy, crafting a compulsively readable story that rings true with genuine feeling and is propelled by exhilarating swimming action to an end that is both cataclysmic and triumphant." "In the hands of a lesser storyteller, the tale would fall apart under its own weight. "This being Crutcher, the action is fast and furious, the language foul, the victims' stories heart-rending, the climax violent and the themes thought-provoking." And the bus on which the Mermen travel to swim meets-piloted by Icko, the permanent resident of All, Night Fitness-soon becomes the cocoon inside which they gradually allow themselves to talk, to fit, to bloom.Ĭhris Crutcher is in top form with a cast of characters-adults, children, and teenagers-fighting for dignity in a world where tragedy and comedy dance side by side, where a moment's inattention can bring lifelong heartache, and where true acceptance is the only prescription for what ails us. Still, it's always the quest that counts. is concerned) of all that is screwed up at Cutter High-will be an effective carving tool. is convinced that a varsity letter jacket-unattainable for most, exclusive, revered, the symbol (as far as T.
Jones (the J is redundant) to find their places in a school that has no place for them, the Cutter All Night Mermen struggle to carve out their own turf. The good news is that only one of them can swim anyway.Ī group of misfits brought together by T. The bad news is that they don't have a pool. There's bad news and good news about the Cutter High School swim team.
0 kommentar(er)
