It's been over ten years since The Chocolate War (1974), but the action in this sequel takes place only a few months after the original ugly doings at Trinity High—a boys' day school in drab mid-New England. The Vigils, the secret society headed by cold, manipulative senior Archie Costello, is still going strong. Brother Leon, the slimy teacher who has become Archie's quasi-partner in dictatorial evil, is now the Headmaster. And the one student who stood up to Archie in The Chocolate War—Jerry Renault—is at home, still recuperating from the physical/psychic damage of his doomed attempt at individualistic defiance. As the end of the school year approaches, however, two of Archie's longtime student-henchmen will become increasingly disaffected, secretly rebellious. Carter, clumsy super-jock and Vigils "president," is horrified by Archie's latest scheme—a plan to humiliate both Brother Leon and the Bishop (!) during an upcoming assembly; so he sends an anonymous warning to Brother Leon. . . and suffers the consequences when Archie (a subtle tormentor) finds out. Meanwhile, Archie's sometime confidant Obie, in wild love with Laurie Gundarson, loses interest in The Vigils; when Laurie is nearly raped by a trio of Vigils henchmen, Obie loses her—and vows revenge on Archie (who inspired but didn't order the attack). Still, though Obie is clever and gutsy in his scheme to humiliate and frighten Archie on Fair Day, he finds that his hatred has made him into someone just as monstrous as Archie (near-fatal tricks with a magic-show guillotine)—while Jerry Renault decides, after another run-in with Vigils violence, to return to Trinity High, ready to "outlast" the bullies rather than fight them. Cormier overdoes the gangland-style villainy and mayhem this time around. (There's also the suicide of one of Brother Leon's student-victims.) The tangle of power/violence/evil themes involves some heavyhanded summations and more than a few unconvincing moments—especially when it comes to Obie's near-murder of Satan-symbol Archie. But, for the many fans of The Chocolate War: another dark, intense melodrama—with another downbeat, Evil-Goes-On ending.
Pub Date: April 21, 1985
ISBN: 044090580X
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: April 18, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 1985
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience.
The How to Catch A… crew try for Comet.
Having already failed to nab a Halloween witch, the Easter Bunny, a turkey, a leprechaun, the Tooth Fairy, and over a dozen other iconic trophies in previous episodes of this bestselling series, one would think the racially diverse gaggle of children in Elkerton’s moonlit, wintry scenes would be flagging…but no, here they lay out snares ranging from a loop of garland to an igloo baited with reindeer moss to an enticing candy cane maze, all in hopes of snagging one of Santa’s reindeer while he’s busy delivering presents. Infused with pop culture–based Christmas cheer (“Now I’ve already seen the shelf with the elf”), Comet prances past the traps until it’s time to gather up the kids, most of whom look terrified, for a group snapshot with the other reindeer and then climb back into harness: “This was a great stop but a few million to go / Christmas Eve must continue with style!” Though festive, the verse feels trite and unlikely to entice youngsters. A sprinkling of “True Facts About Reindeer” (“They live in the tundra, where they have friends like the arctic bunny”) wrap up this celebration of the predatory spirit. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
These reindeer games are a bit tired but, given the series’ popularity, should have a large, ready-made audience. (Picture book. 5-7)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 9781728276137
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: Dec. 12, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound.
The titular cookie runs off the page at a bookstore storytime, pursued by young listeners and literary characters.
Following on 13 previous How To Catch… escapades, Wallace supplies sometimes-tortured doggerel and Elkerton, a set of helter-skelter cartoon scenes. Here the insouciant narrator scampers through aisles, avoiding a series of elaborate snares set by the racially diverse young storytime audience with help from some classic figures: “Alice and her mad-hat friends, / as a gift for my unbirthday, / helped guide me through the walls of shelves— / now I’m bound to find my way.” The literary helpers don’t look like their conventional or Disney counterparts in the illustrations, but all are clearly identified by at least a broad hint or visual cue, like the unnamed “wizard” who swoops in on a broom to knock over a tower labeled “Frogwarts.” Along with playing a bit fast and loose with details (“Perhaps the boy with the magic beans / saved me with his cow…”) the author discards his original’s lip-smacking climax to have the errant snack circling back at last to his book for a comfier sort of happily-ever-after.
A brisk if bland offering for series fans, but cleverer metafictive romps abound. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Aug. 3, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-7282-0935-7
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Sourcebooks Wonderland
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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