Author of the Month

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He attended St. Celia's Parochial Grammar School, where some of the nuns gave him a terrible time. When he was in eighth grade, he watched in horror from his classroom window as his own house caught fire and burned. His teacher refused to let him go to see if his family was safe until he had said the requisite prayers. This incident enraged him for years afterward. One of the nuns, however, made a remark that changed the way he thought of himself. His seventh grade teacher read one of his poems and told him that he was a writer. He believed her, and continued to think of himself as one. Later, a teacher at Fitchburg State College was so impressed with one of Cormier's stories that she submitted it to a magazine; it became his first published work.

After college, Cormier went on to write commercials for a local radio station, and soon switched to newspaper work. He was a writer and editor at the Fitchburg Sentinel for 23 years, where he won three major journalism awards. He later wrote short stories for popular magazines such as McCall's and the Saturday Evening Post. Cormier married in 1948, and despite his own childhood experiences, he and his wife sent their four children to local parochial schools.

Cormier's first three books were moderately successful, but in 1974 The Chocolate War launched him into the young adult market where he has had tremendous success. Some critics say that his novels offer students a realistic view of human nature while others complain that his themes are too dark and cynical. Cormier says: "I'm very much interested in intimidation...And the way people manipulate other people. And the obvious abuse of authority... The story comes first. If it doesn't succeed as a story, no one is ever going to get to the theme. . . . The rest really is a bonus, that people can find things in my books to argue about. Or to teach or debate. Or even to be upset about. That's all an extra richness for me. I just  want to tell a darn good story." His books are consistently recommended by the American Library Association and School Library Journal as well as other reviewers of young adult literature.

Cormier still lives in Leominster since he says "There are lots of  untold stories right here on Main Street,". And still writes for young people-and often directly to them, answering the numerous letters his young readers have sent him over the years.  Cormier says:  "I can't remember a time, really, when I haven't been a writer. . . . Reading and writing . . . were the two great escapes of my life and I suppose they still are."