The Chocolate War (pg 1-40)

Summary-
The book starts out in medias res. The main character Jerry is introduced when he is trying out for the Trinity High School football team. He was trying out for the quarterback position. He was getting hit hard and he could barely get back up after. The coach helped him up and told him to come back tomorrow. He got back to the locker room and vomited. The Vigils, a secret group run by boys at school. The leader of the group was Carter. The assigner was Archie but even though Archie was the signer he had the brains which made him the real leader. Brother Leon, a teacher at the school needs help selling two thousand boxes of chocolate. He asks Archie to help, which means he wanted the Vigils to help.

Quotation-
"Carter was the president of the Vigils because the president was always a football player- the muscle someone like Archie needed. But everyone knew the head of the Vigils was The Assigner, Archie Costello..." (Cormier 32)

Reaction-
The Vigils was a secret group that had influence on the school. Archie was a powerful kid at Trinity High School. The quote shows that the Vigils is diverse. They have muscle and brains. Jerry Renault is the new freshman at school and is adjusting to the way the school operates. The chocolates that need to be sold is important to Brother Leon because they need the income because they havent been getting enough money lately