About the Author

Robert Cormier was born in Massachusetts, USA in 1925. He began his professional writing career as a journalist and scriptwriter and turned to full-time writing after the successful publication of his first novel for teenagers, The Chocolate War. He soon established a reputation as a brilliant and uncompromising writer of novels for young adults. He died in November 2000.

Reviews

According to PW's starred review, this dark story of a WWII veteran who seeks revenge on an old mentor "will hold fans from first page to last, and set them thinking about what really lurks behind the face of a hero." Ages 12-up. (Feb.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Gr 9 Up-Francis Cassavant, now 18 and the recipient of the respected Silver Star for heroism, returns to the Frenchtown section of Monument following World War II intent on murdering his former mentor and fellow Silver Star winner, Larry LaSalle. With a face ravaged by shrapnel from the grenade he fell on‘ostensibly to save his comrades, but in reality to take his own life‘Francis walks the streets of his old hometown. Wearing a silk scarf to mask his disfigurement, he remembers his childhood in the prewar days and searches for his nemesis, whom he feels sure will also return. Memories of his innocent years at St. Jude's Parochial School are sardonically juxtaposed with the present horror of his desolate existence. Expert at nothing as a boy, Francis was empowered by the encouragement of Larry, the acrobat, dancer, teacher, and coach at the town's recreation center. Francis's dreams and youth were shattered when the man, home on leave, raped Francis's girlfriend, and he failed to intervene. Disillusioned, the boy forged his birth certificate, enlisted to die an honorable death, and ended up living a nightmare. Cormier takes the notion of heroism and deconstructs it. The hero is epitomized by Francis: a white scarf, no more than a veneer, hiding an appalling reality of hypocrisy and betrayal. The thread of Catholicism is woven throughout the narrative. Characters are not absolutes, but capable of great and evil acts. This lean, compelling read may not rank among the most popular of Cormier's works, but it is a powerful and thought-provoking study.-Jennifer A. Fakolt, formerly at Carson City Public Library, NV