Chris Crutcher Can Visit Anytime!

This is Visiting Author week at Shanghai American School. A lot of work and preparation go into arranging for an author to travel to China for almost 2 weeks and do 32 sessions with students and teachers. It's an exciting week!

This year the high school visiting author is powerhouse young adult author Chris Crutcher. When I was trying to get an author, the middle school librarian suggested Crutcher, saying she saw him at a library conference and he was terrific. My reply was, "As if! Why don't we just try to get JK Rowling!" I had read many Crutcher books and his titles are on a unbelievable number of "best of" lists. He's a huge name in teen literature. When his assitant responded positively to my e-mail, I was floored.

So a year of planning went by. Contracts were signed, airline tickets purchased, Chinese visa obtained, hotels arranged, schedule created. The moment of truth, aka Chris Crutcher, arrived in Shanghai at 3:00pm on Monday. This is when the rubber hit the road. Visiting author week is a fantastic experience for the students, but to be quite honest, it can be less than fantastic for the librarian! If the author is a poor presenter or high maintenance, the end of the week can't come soon enough! I was a little worried about Crutcher because of his elite status in the literary world. He could be a demanding egomaniac and it would be justified. I wouldn't enjoy it, but at least he had earned it.

Crutcher is the visiting author trifecta! He's an excellent writer, fantastic presenter and he couldn't be lower maintenance! So far he has done 7 student presentations and 1 staff presentation and they were all engaging, sincere, funny and thought provoking. He enjoys making a real connection with people and takes the time to have honest conversations. Today he read a short story by David, a senior at our school. Chris then took the time to talk with him in the hall and encouraged him to continue writing. I could tell David was shocked and proud. This afternoon I received an e-mail from a mother who told me that Crutcher spoke to her son's class yesterday and he gave rave reviews. He then checked out a bunch of Chris' books and was going crazy over them. This is what visiting authors week is all about. Mission accomplished!

On a personal level, Chris is the perfect match for this librarian! He's easy going and funny, someone I like to spend time with. That makes my week so much easier and enjoyable. I would pick him out of a crowd to be my friend. He's happy, goes with the flow and even played basketball with the staff after school today! After basketball we went to a local place for dinner with my 5th grade daughter, Brenna and all three of us had a great time. He writes for teens, but was totally at home eating cabbage and noodles with an elementary student. (She's an incredible elementary student, but that's another blog!)

Sometimes at the end of visiting authors week, I'm relieved to say goodbye. Not this year. I feel like I'll be saying goodbye to a friend.