Robert Cormier (1925–2000)

Adam is riding his bicycle through several small towns en route to visiting his father in the hospital. In between these scenes an interview is taking place where someone is being helped with delving into their memories, filling in the blanks that they are no longer able to recall. These two threads gradually sew together, and we discover that neither one is entirely what it appears to be.

I read a lot of books as a kid, but this one I found completely disorienting. I didn't know what kind show more of doctor only talks to you and takes notes, had never read a book that alternated between past and present, and I found the ending indecipherable. Now as an adult I can unravel it, but I'm surprised by its complexity given its target audience and not surprised at all that I couldn't grasp it then. The ending's revelations are subtly done and lingering mysteries remain. Was the family betrayed? Is his father still on the run? Where did the Hertz family go? It's a grim story with a sinister message about distrusting authority but so artful that I have to admire it, as if Thomas Pynchon were to write cogent young adult. show less

"They don't actually want you to do your thing, not unless it's their thing too."

Every year Trinity Boy's School runs a chocolate sale. Each boy 'volunteers' to sell a quota of boxes in a fund-raising effort that is also a display of 'school spirit'. But this year is different, because new boy Jerry Renault has refused to take part. Initially he does so for ten days at the command of a secretive student group the 'Vigils' but once those ten days up he decides unilaterally to continue with show more his stance.

This book was first published in 1974 and has spent most of it's time since on the 'top 10 banned books list' in American schools because of it's content, in part sexual (masturbation), in part religious (it is a Catholic school and some of the teachers are good and some are bad) but mainly because it features bullying.

The book is relatively short but packs a punch. It features some of the best and worst facets of human nature. Jerry is idealistic, Archie is egocentric, Brother Leon is manipulative abusive whilst Goober who is privately supportive of Jerry's choice isn't willing to do so publicly and Carter has a false sense of control.

I found that I had a love/hate relationship with this book. I loved the way that it sucked me in, made me think and how I struggled to put it down. I hated the fact that Cormier felt the need to write it, I hated the fact that the story was realistic and represented real life for some students the world over, I hated the fact that Jerry's ostracization was easy to relate to, I hated the mob-like attitude of the other students, I hated the fact that even the 'good' teachers were willing to intervene, I hated how disturbing the norm was shown to be dangerous and brave but most of all I hated being asked if I would have been strong enough to say 'NO'. The book ended inconclusively despite my fervent hoping that somehow Jerry would gain some sort of reprieve and hating the fact that it had to do so to be realistic.

Personally I would have liked to have seen a little more in depth characterisation but despite being many decades beyond the book's intended market audience I found it a powerful and moving piece that made me sit up and think, as such I would highly recommend it. However, I doubt that I will read the sequel in the fear that it won't be as good. show less

A YA novel published in 1974. Highly praised, and equally controversial, the story involves a "secret" society known as The Vigils (which everyone knows about) in a Catholic high school where "leadership" translates to manipulation, humiliation and exploitation. Both students and faculty are motivated entirely by self-interest, and neither Christianity nor good ol' fashioned morality are evident anywhere. Youthful hi-jinks have a cruel edge, and the Vigils encourage their de facto leader, show more Archie, in his sadistic assignments which amount to continual hazing. An annual school-wide fundraiser takes on serious significance when Brother Leon announces that thisyear the price of a box of chocolates will be twice what it was in the past, AND the goal for the sale is to move 20,000 boxes, which is also a doubling of the previous goal. Brother Leon solicits Archie's help in bringing the Vigils on board with this daunting undertaking, so naturally Archie decides to "assign" one of freshmen to refuse to participate in the sale. All hell breaks loose when Jerry decides to continue his refusal past the one-week assignment.

This is a profound exploration of issues basic to adolescent life. Herd mentality; peer pressure; personal integrity; identity; conformity; respect for vs. blind acceptance of vs. rebellion against authority; sexual expression/fantasies/repression; bullying...no wonder there have been so many attempts to ban it. It's about REALITY, for cryin' out loud. Kids shouldn't be exposed to that. They can't handle reading about the kind of stuff so many of them deal with on a daily basis. My only quibble with this story is that there are NO responsible, caring adults in it. I think I understand the author's decision (and it must have been intentional) to leave them out. The school is a closed society, even though the boys go home at the end of the day; what happens at Trinity stays at Trinity. It's obvious that the boys are without sincere guidance at a critical point in their lives. (There are brief references to Jerry's Dad, who works nights, and whom Jerry doesn't want to worry, possibly included to explain the apparent overall lack of parental involvement in these kids' lives.)
A tough read, with an important message. Ironically, it might be most important for the adults who would ban it to get that message themselves. show less

This is probably the most explicit of Cormier's novels, in terms of both the sex and the violence. (But I've had the privilege of reading its early drafts and they made the final product seem quite tame!) It's structured almost as precisely as I am the Cheese. It takes a writer of great skill to get the reader to understand and sympathize with a teenage necrophiliac serial killer, even as they understand he must be brought down. Lori was blonde and big-breasted and promiscuous, but she was show more surprisingly innocent and likeable for all that. Jake Proctor could be seen as the stereotype of an old cop, but he's hardly a cardboard figure. Kudos to Cormier as usual. show less