The Chocolate War

1974 (published) ; Robert Cormier

The Chocolate War is a young adult novel by American author Robert Cormier, published in 1974. It was adapted into a film in 1988. Although it received mixed reviews at the time of its publication, some reviewers have argued it is one of the best young adult novels of all-time. Set at a fictional Catholic high school, the story depicts a secret student organization's manipulation of the student body, which descends into cruel and ugly mob mentality against a lone, non-conforming student. Because of the novel's language, the concept of a high school secret society using intimidation to enforce the cultural norms of the school, and various characters' sexual ponderings, it has been embroiled in censorship controversies and appeared as third on the American Library Association's list of the "Top 100 Banned/Challenged Books in 2000–2009." A sequel was published in 1985 called Beyond the Chocolate War.