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Ironman (1995 novel)
Encyclopedia
Ironman is a 1995
novel by young adult
writer
Chris Crutcher
who studied art and literature at the University of Notre Dame in his twenties. He created the cover image on the novel himself using the medium of oil pastel. The novel Ironman is the story of Beauregard Brewster, a high school student training for a triathlon while also in disputes with his father and English teacher, both of whom exhibit portentous views of masculine authority. The book is written as a combination of traditional third person narrative and epistolary novel through a series of informal letters written by the protagonist
to CNN
personality Larry King
. The novel has received numerous accolades including being recognized by the American Library Association
as a “Best Book for Young Adults.”http://chriscrutcher.com/content/blogcategory/64/53/
where Beauregard Brewster (Bo) lives with his mother and younger brother Jordan. Motivated by years of conflict with his father and a recent dispute with Coach Redmond, Bo’s football coach and English teacher, the teenager trains vigorously for the Yukon Jack Ironman Triathlon
. Along the way Bo is forced to enroll in the school’s anger management
program, where much to his surprise he meets a wise old shop teacher and a group of supposed delinquents who inspire and support him further in his efforts.
Some other (potentially controversial) themes the novel touches on include:
1995 in literature
The year 1995 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*The Dylan Thomas Centre in Swansea is opened by Jimmy Carter....
novel by young adult
Young adult literature
Young-adult fiction or young adult literature , also juvenile fiction, is fiction written for, published for, or marketed to adolescents and young adults, roughly ages 14 to 21. The Young Adult Library Services of the American Library Association defines a young adult as "someone between the...
writer
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
Chris Crutcher
Chris Crutcher
-Biography:Crutcher was born to a World War II bomber pilot and a homemaker on July 17, 1946, in Dayton, Ohio. They later moved to Cascade, Idaho, where Crutcher grew up....
who studied art and literature at the University of Notre Dame in his twenties. He created the cover image on the novel himself using the medium of oil pastel. The novel Ironman is the story of Beauregard Brewster, a high school student training for a triathlon while also in disputes with his father and English teacher, both of whom exhibit portentous views of masculine authority. The book is written as a combination of traditional third person narrative and epistolary novel through a series of informal letters written by the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
to CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
personality Larry King
Larry King
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" King is an American television and radio host whose work has been recognized with awards including two Peabodys and ten Cable ACE Awards....
. The novel has received numerous accolades including being recognized by the American Library Association
American Library Association
The American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
as a “Best Book for Young Adults.”http://chriscrutcher.com/content/blogcategory/64/53/
Plot summary
The story takes place in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, Washington
Spokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
where Beauregard Brewster (Bo) lives with his mother and younger brother Jordan. Motivated by years of conflict with his father and a recent dispute with Coach Redmond, Bo’s football coach and English teacher, the teenager trains vigorously for the Yukon Jack Ironman Triathlon
Ironman Triathlon
An Ironman Triathlon is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation consisting of a swim, a bike and a marathon run, raced in that order and without a break...
. Along the way Bo is forced to enroll in the school’s anger management
Anger management
The term anger management commonly refers to a system of psychological therapeutic techniques and exercises by which someone with excessive or uncontrollable anger & aggression can control or reduce the triggers, degrees, and effects of an angered emotional state...
program, where much to his surprise he meets a wise old shop teacher and a group of supposed delinquents who inspire and support him further in his efforts.
Characters
- Beauregard "Bo" Brewster is the narratorNarratorA narrator is, within any story , the fictional or non-fictional, personal or impersonal entity who tells the story to the audience. When the narrator is also a character within the story, he or she is sometimes known as the viewpoint character. The narrator is one of three entities responsible for...
and protagonistProtagonistA protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
. Bo is a humorous character who shares most of his feelings with a diary which he addresses to Larry King. Bo struggles to deal with his parents' divorce and his relationship with his father while he's been forced to join anger management. Bo also attempts to deal with his feelings by training to become a triathlete.
- Mr. Nakatani is a shop teacher who is in charge of the school's anger management group. Mr. Nak is calm and patient with his "eclectic mix of hard-edged students." Some of the "truants" names are Elvis, Shuja, and Hudgie. Of Asian descent, Mr. Nak has a Texas accent, a cowboy attitude, and the determination of a martial artist.
- Lionel Serbousek is Bo's supportive Journalism teacher and mentor. Bo struggles to cope with his discovery that Mr. Serbousek is a homosexual. Mr. Serbousek is also in Crutcher's other novel, Stotan.
- Shelly is Bo's love interest. She is also enrolled in Mr. Nak's anger management class. Also a disciplined athlete, Shelly helps Bo prepare for the triathlon.
Themes
Like many of Crutcher's other novels, Ironman deals with the physical and emotional growth of adolescent athletes.Some other (potentially controversial) themes the novel touches on include:
- Anger management
- DivorceDivorceDivorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
- Child AbuseChild abuseChild abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
- AdoptionAdoptionAdoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
- HomosexualityHomosexualityHomosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
Awards and honors for Ironman
- Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers 1996, (ALAAmerican Library AssociationThe American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
) - Best Books For Young Adults 1996 (ALAAmerican Library AssociationThe American Library Association is a non-profit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 62,000 members....
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