Robert Cormier Kathryn Kielminski LIS722 Summer I 2006

Biography  Born January 17, 1925  Lived in Leominster, Massachusetts  Second of eight children in family  Attended Fitchburg State College  Married Connie and raised four children  Newspaper reporter and columnist  Died November 2, 2000

Influences  Ernest Hemingway  William Saroyan  Thomas Wolfe  J.D. Salinger  John O’Hara  “WHAT IF? Is the spark that starts all of my writing”

Writing Style  Protagonists typically “are more tragic than not”  “I take real people and put them in extraordinary situations”  Grim realism  Tell it like it really is  Use of simile and metaphor

Heroes … “I wanted to write Heroes to express how I felt about heroism. The impetus came from two areas—the 50 th anniversary of D-day… My heroes are the ordinary people who do their duty quietly, without fanfare, whether it’s fighting a war or going to work every day. I feel that we are surrounded by heroes and saints in our daily lives. My father worked 44 years in the shops, provided for his family, even in the hard times. When he died, I realized that he would have given up his life for me.” – Robert Cormier

Titles by Cormier  Now and at the Hour (1960)  A Little Raw on Monday Mornings (1963)  Take Me Where the Good Times Are (1965)  The Chocolate War (1974)  I am the Cheese (1977)  After the First Death (1979)  The Bumblebee Flies Anyway (1983)  Beyond the Chocolate War (1985)  Fade (1988)  Other Bells for Us to Ring (1990)  We All Fall Down (1991)  I Have Words to Spend (1991)  Tunes for Bears to Dance To (1992)  In the Middle of the Night (1995)  Tenderness (1997)  Heroes (1998)  Frenchtown Summer (1999)  The Rag and Bone Shop (2001)

Critic’s Thoughts  "Again, the inimitable Cormier luridly explores the fouler corners of our spiritual attics." -- Kirkus Reviews, Pointer (We all Fall Down)  “Imagine what might happen if Holden Caulfield stepped into H. G. Wells’ The Invisible Man, and you’ll have an idea how good Fade is.... I was absolutely riveted.”—Stephen King  "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 Chocolate War)  “The Chocolate War initiated a new level of literary excellence in the fledgling genre of young adult fiction” (Campbell, “Farewell” 245)

Bibliography  tml  mier.cfm  authorid=5740  robert.asp     books.guardian.co.uk/news/articles/0,6109, ,00.html  authid=80  falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/cormier.htm  z=y&cid=   e/5191/  Campbell, Patty. “A Loving Farewell to Robert Cormier”, Horn Book Magazine; Mar/Apr 2001, Vol. 77 Issue 2, p  Latrobe, Kathy & Hutcherson, Trisha. “An introduction to Ten Ourstanding Young-Adult Authors in the United States”, World Literature Today; Summer/Autumn 2002, Vol. 76, Iss 3/4, p. 69.  Sutton, Roger. “Kind of a Funny Dichotomy”, School Library Journal, June 1991, p