''The Sledding Hill'' is a
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
post-modern metafictional novel by
young adult
A young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages of human development significantly influencing the definition of ...
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...
Chris Crutcher
Chris Crutcher (born July 17, 1946) is an American novelist and a family therapist. He received the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 2000 for his lifetime contribution in writing for teens.
Biography
Crutcher was ...
. By having the novel narrated by a super-omniscient dead boy and placing himself into the novel, Crutcher has written a work that encompasses two literary
fad
A fad or trend is any form of collective behavior that develops within a culture, a generation or social group in which a group of people enthusiastically follow an impulse for a short period.
Fads are objects or behaviors that achieve short- ...
s.
Plot summary
The novel is narrated by the late Billy Bartholomew, the best friend of the protagonist, Eddie Proffit. Eddie is an intelligent boy who is seemingly afflicted with
ADHD
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inapp ...
. After the death of two important figures of his life in quick succession, his father and his best friend, Eddie refuses to speak. He begins talking again when he testifies in front of the Red Brick Church announcing he will not only not join the church, but will also speak in favor of ''Warren Peece'' at the school board meeting. A misinterpretation of his testimony compels the church members to have Eddie placed into a mental health facility supposedly because Eddie thinks he is
Jesus Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
. Crutcher places himself in the novel's climax as a speaker at the board meeting on the removal of the book.
Major themes
A frequent target of censors, Crutcher touches on many of his familiar themes in this work: literary and intellectual freedom along with freedom of speech, religious prejudice, mental disabilities and homosexuality. Oddly, though many of his previous works are challenged on the basis of language being inappropriate for the intended audience, there is no objectionable language in ''The Sledding Hill'' (besides a brief mention of huevos, male testicles in Spanish). Crutcher has said that he did this intentionally so that censors would not have bad language as a reason to hide behind their disagreement with the book's content, so the only reason it could be banned would be for its subject matter.
External links
About Crutcher
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sledding Hill, The
2005 American novels
American young adult novels
Novels by Chris Crutcher