The Chocolate War

By: Robert Cormier

Narrated by: Frank Muller

One of the most controversial YA novels of all time, The Chocolate War is a modern masterpiece that speaks to fans of S. E. Hinton’s The Outsiders and John Knowles’s A Separate Peace.

After suffering rejection from seven major publishers, The Chocolate War made its debut in 1974, and quickly became a bestselling—and provocative—classic for young adults. This chilling portrait of an all-boys prep school casts an unflinching eye on the pitfalls of conformity and corruption in our most elite cultural institutions.

“Masterfully structured and rich in theme; the action is well crafted, well timed, suspenseful.”—The New York Times Book Review

“[Frank] Muller's mesmerizing narration underlines Jerry's frustrations with sports, school, family, and life. He captures the tone and cadences of the male cast, from Jerry's growing disillusionment and Archie's sly intimidation to the chilling menace in Brother Leon's voice…ln his foreword, Cormier admits he wrote this for adults, not knowing that writing for young adults was even a possibility. Yet it has become a controversial and often banned YA classic, rich in themes—bullying, fitting in versus being true to oneself, dealing with peer pressure—that resonate as profoundly today as they did when this was published, in 1974.”—Booklist, starred review

“The characterizations of all the boys are superb.”—School Library Journal, starred review

“Compellingly immediate. . . . Readers will respect the uncompromising ending.”—Kirkus Reviews, starred review

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
A Kirkus Reviews Editor’s Choice
A New York Times Outstanding Book of the Year©1974 Robert Cormier; (P)2004 Random House, Inc. Listening Library, an imprint of the Random House Audio Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"The Chocolate War is masterfully structured and rich in theme; the action is well crafted, well timed, suspenseful; complex ideas develop and unfold with clarity."-The New York Times Book Review

"The characterizations of all the boys are superb... This novel [is] unique in its uncompromising portrait of human cruelty and conformity."-School Library Journal, starred review

"The novel is cleverly written with a good sense of the realistic and a good ear for dialouge, qualities which will attract any reader."-Bestsellers

"Robert Cormier has written a brilliant novel."-Children's Book Revie Service

I enjoyed this book

I enjoyed this book even though it was for my English class!
So I thank the author! Thank you!

Still love it

This was my favorite book throughout my teen years. Now in my fifties, I tried it again. I’m scared to say I still love this book.

Interesting take on high school and sociopathy

This was an interesting one. A boy attending a private school takes on the powers that be by refusing to sell chocolates for a school fundraiser. The story is told from multiple perspectives, and one of the boys is clearly a sociopath. It's actually almost scary to be in this kid's head. The performance was great and it was a good listen.

#tagsgiving #sweepstakes #provocative #americana #highschool #comingofage

Well-written, but not redeeming.

A little redemption in the end would've been nice. Nice reminder good doesn't always triumph.

An Important and Poignant Tale For Teenagers

A book that is not afraid to tel a theme in a dark and realistic way. It would be so simple and easy to make this a story about going against the grain and being an individual but it shows you the risk. The fact of how hard it is to be an insidiously when the entire world is forcing you to bend the knee. A tale that has effected my entire life. Yes it can be violent and crude but all with meaning. To ignore this book would be a grave mistake.