Adam Rapp

Adam Rapp writes young adult novels and plays marked by raw, searching voices. His books include 33 Snowfish, The Buffalo Tree, The Copper Elephant, Little Chicago, The Children and the Wolves, and Punkzilla, which received a 2010 Michael L. Printz Honor. His work also includes plays for the stage and screen.

Photo Source: House of SpeakEasy — Adam Rapp writer profile ↗

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Years covered2009

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Punkzilla

2009 · Contemporary

Print — Amazon

3 editions: Print · 2009 | eBook · 2010

About this work & edition details

An award-winning writer and playwright hits the open road for a searing novel-in-letters about a street kid on a highstakes trek across America. For a runaway boy who goes by the name "Punkzilla," kicking a meth habit and a life of petty crime in Portland, Oregon, is a prelude to a mission: reconnecting with his older brother, a gay man dying of cancer in Memphis. Against a backdrop of seedy motels, dicey bus stations, and hitched rides, the desperate fourteen-year-old meets a colorful, sometimes dangerous cast of characters. And in letters to his sibling, he catalogs them all -- from an abusive stranger and a ghostly girl to a kind transsexual and an old woman with an oozing eye. The language is raw and revealing, crackling with visceral details and dark humor, yet with each interstate exit Punkzilla’s journey grows more urgent: will he make it to Tennessee in time? This daring novel offers a narrative worthy of Kerouac and a keen insight into the power of chance encounters.

Print · 2009 · English

eBook · Candlewick Press · 2010 · English

Listen & Watch

Adam Rapp on The Outsiders

Origin Stories follows the long development of Rapp’s stage adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s novel.

The Theater Enthusiast Podcast

Rapp discusses his route into writing, the O’Neill Center, and his work on The Outsiders.

The Outsiders Musical & American Rust

Rapp and Dan Futterman discuss writing for stage and television on The Creative Process.

Curtain Call Chicago

Rapp discusses his Midwestern roots, career, family, and the work of adapting The Outsiders.

Adam Rapp on Kindness

Playwrights Horizons talks with Rapp about the cast of Kindness and the demands of writing and directing.

Wolf at the Table

Rapp discusses the family history behind Wolf at the Table in this video interview.

More About Adam Rapp

Adam Rapp writes young adult novels and plays in a style that Candlewick describes as raw, stream-of-consciousness, and attentive to voices on the edge of belonging. His young adult books include 33 Snowfish , The Buffalo Tree, The Copper Elephant, Little Chicago, The Children and the Wolves, and Punkzilla .

Punkzilla received a 2010 Michael L. Printz Honor . Rapp’s work also extends across the stage : Steppenwolf’s artist profile identifies plays including Nocturne, Red Light Winter, and The Metal Children, alongside his writing for film and television.

Awards & Recognition

2010 Michael L. Printz Honor — Punkzilla

Candlewick identifies Punkzilla as a 2010 Michael L. Printz Honor book.

Stage and Screen

Adam Rapp’s plays

Steppenwolf’s artist profile places Rapp’s plays, including Nocturne, Red Light Winter, and The Metal Children, within his wider writing career.

Critical Reception

33 Snowfish — Publishers Weekly

Publishers Weekly describes Rapp’s debut as a dark tale of three runaways whose alternating voices make abuse and survival impossible to look away from.