Deadline

Chris Crutcher’s novel Deadline is a work of young adult literary fiction. Set in the small town of Trout, Idaho, the novel is written from the protagonist Ben Wolf’s first-person point of view and traces his experiences throughout his senior year of high school. An energetic and determined character, Ben is ready to live his life to its fullest before leaving home for college. However, just after his 18th birthday, Ben’s circumstances change forever when he learns that he has a chronic blood disease and one year to live.

True to all of Crutcher’s young adult novels, Deadline explores the complexities of coming of age amidst difficult circumstances. Ben’s prognosis challenges him to ask hard questions about life, death, love, and purpose. In Crutcher’s characteristic style, he depicts Ben’s narrative with empathy, tenderness, and humor. Crutcher uses Ben’s unprecedented situation as the soil for his explorations of The Confrontation of Mortality, The Impact of Secrets and the Value of Transparency, and Self-Discovery and Personal Growth in the Face of Adversity.

This guide refers to the 2007 HarperCollins Children’s Books paperback edition of the novel.