The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier

Cormier, Robert (1974). The Chocolate War. New York: Random House, Inc.

Jerry Renault faces the decision of going along with his “assignment” or defying The Vigils. He asks himself the question posted in his locker: “Do I dare disturb the universe?”

“Do I dare disturb the universe?

Yes, I do, I do. I think.

Jerry suddenly understood the poster-the solitary man on the beach standing upright and alone and unafraid, poised at the moment of making himself heard and known in the world, the universe” (pg. 196).

Jerry Renault is a freshman who just wants to fit in and make the freshman football team. This all changes when he is chosen by The Vigils for an “assignment.” At first he is reluctant and embarrassed by his assignment, then the line from the poster in his locker won’t leave his mind and he wonders what he should do. “Do I dare disturb the universe?”

This was an interesting book about a bunch of young boys who are just trying to fit in at their school, but one boy, Jerry Renault, takes things a bit farther when he defies the boys who “run” the school. It was really interesting to see how far Jerry would go to defy The Vigils. It was a realistic fiction book and it is sad to think that there are some kids who have to endure that ‘torture’ at the hands of their peers. Archie was particularly interesting, because he was the ‘leader’ and almost fell from power but worked his way back on top, and it was kind of shocking what he does and does not learn from his experiences.