A review by elmeeks
Angry Management by Chris Crutcher
3.0
Rating: *** Upon closer examination this turned out to be three novelettes which featured characters from earlier Chris Crutcher novels. Since this is my first Chris Crutcher novel, I found it hard to say if I would have liked the novelettes better or worse having read the original books the characters are from. I did not really think the Chris Crutcher set up the book with the character of Nat being the leader of group therapy that all the characters went to was well thought out.
Plot:
Story 1: Has Angus and Sarah Brynes as the main characters. Angus and Sarah start dating. Angus takes Sarah to see her mother who abandoned her when she was little.
Characters: Angus is an overweight teens with homosexual parents. He is shy, loyal, caring. Sarah is an emotionally and physically scared teen who is very guarded.
Story 2: Montana West is a rebellious adopted teenager who wants the school newspaper to publish her article on medical marijuana. Her adopted father is the head of the school board and refuses to allow the paper to print articles that deal with controversial topics.
Characters: Montana is very head strong. She is very caring towards her foster sister Tara. Trey Chase is apparently a bit of a lady’s man. He is handsome, smart, and a good athlete. He helps Montana with her cause.
Story 3: Marcus James is the only black student in his high school. He also happens to be openly gay as well. One day Marcus walks into school to find a pink noose hanging from his locker. This story deals with hate crimes and how schools choose to deal or not deal with them.
Characters: Marcus is smart, witty, confident. Matt Miller is a wrestler who stands up for what he believes even if it goes against what his friends think or it gets him in trouble.
Themes: bigotry, abuse, foster care, free speech, growing up, teachers as mentors, hate crimes
Additional Information: I’d be interested to know if people who have read other Chris Crutcher books with these characters in them like this collection of short stories.
Plot:
Story 1: Has Angus and Sarah Brynes as the main characters. Angus and Sarah start dating. Angus takes Sarah to see her mother who abandoned her when she was little.
Characters: Angus is an overweight teens with homosexual parents. He is shy, loyal, caring. Sarah is an emotionally and physically scared teen who is very guarded.
Story 2: Montana West is a rebellious adopted teenager who wants the school newspaper to publish her article on medical marijuana. Her adopted father is the head of the school board and refuses to allow the paper to print articles that deal with controversial topics.
Characters: Montana is very head strong. She is very caring towards her foster sister Tara. Trey Chase is apparently a bit of a lady’s man. He is handsome, smart, and a good athlete. He helps Montana with her cause.
Story 3: Marcus James is the only black student in his high school. He also happens to be openly gay as well. One day Marcus walks into school to find a pink noose hanging from his locker. This story deals with hate crimes and how schools choose to deal or not deal with them.
Characters: Marcus is smart, witty, confident. Matt Miller is a wrestler who stands up for what he believes even if it goes against what his friends think or it gets him in trouble.
Themes: bigotry, abuse, foster care, free speech, growing up, teachers as mentors, hate crimes
Additional Information: I’d be interested to know if people who have read other Chris Crutcher books with these characters in them like this collection of short stories.