Browse Items (50 total)
- Collection: After the First Death
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Robert Cormier's letter to Kevin Prentice
Robert Cormier responds to Kevin's inquiries regarding the ideas for the novel, After the First Death. He cites three main sources of interest: 1) his home near Fort Devens and the possibility of a terrorist attack, 2) the Abraham-Isaac Bible story,…
Alyssa O'Brien's letter to Robert Cormier
In this three-page, handwritten letter by 12-year-old Alyssa O'Brien, the reader is introduced to a thoughtful young woman who has read several of Cormier's books twice or more in the interest of better understanding a book as time goes by. That she…
Robert Cormier's draft response to Maxine Shosto
Robert Cormier's hand revised draft of his letter to Maxine Shosto addresses her questions regarding After the First Death. In particular, he talks about the ambiguity in the book and says that it is because life is ambiguous. He had mislaid the…
Maxine Shosto's letter to Robert Cormier
Maxine Shosto was a high school student in England when she wrote this one-page, handwritten letter. She explains that she had been "set to write an essay" and then included several interviews and plot questions concerning After the First Death.
Cindy Ryal's letter to Robert Cormier
Cindy Ryal's letter to Robert Cormier faded and word-processed, dated 12 May 1989 (and it shares most of its text with a letter to Cormier by Kristy). Cindy asks about After the First Death's characters and plot twists. She ends the letter saying her…
Kristy Luzar's letter to Robert Cormier
In Kristy Luzar's typed but very faded letter to Robert Cormier dated 15 May 1989 she shares her engagement with the novel, After the First Death, and asks him key questions about the characters and plot structure of the novel.
Robert Cormier's response to Jennifer Cowan
In his two-page "random" response to Jennifer Cowan, as one of several (or more) classmates who wrote, Robert Cormier reveals that After the First Death is told from the point of view of Ben's father. He refers to a pamphlet he enclosed and hoped…
Jennifer Cowan's letter to Robert Cormier
In this one-page, typed letter dated April 14, 1986 by Jennifer Cowan, a high school student living in Hudson, she asks Cormier specific questions about character development in After the First Death.
Janet Fredericksen's letter to Robert Cormier
In this two-page, handwritten letter by Janet Fredericksen to Robert Cormier, the adult writer explains that she encountered the book, After the First Death, in a Children's Literature class. Almost angrily, she demands to know who his audience is…
Jamie Lavender's letter to Robert Cormier
In this one-page, typed letter by Jamie Lavender, a high school student living in Lakewood, New Jersey, and dated 20 October 1983, the writer wrestles with the question of the purpose of fiction. S/he believes it is to "free the mind" not "burden" it…
Hallowell Headline Mrs. Gottenfeld's Class Project
In this 12-page student-created magazine, Hallowell Headline, Mrs. Gottenfeld's Class Project, dated 26 November 1981, students have written fan fiction inspired by Cormier's book, After the First Death.
Kenneth Melnick's letter to Robert Cormier 10 Dec 1981
In this second letter by Kenneth Melnick to Robert Cormier 10 Dec 1981, Kenneth alludes to a newspaper that his class made inspired by After the First Death. The letter appears to be a cover letter for the package from his school, Mamaroneck High…
Kenneth Melnick's letter to Robert Cormier 29 Nov 1981
This three-page typed letter on personalized stationery, written by ninth-grader Kenneth Melnick to Robert Cormier, dated 29 November 1981 is a series of specific questions about After the First Death. Kenneth has discussed his questions with both…
Mrs. Anti's Class Project, Hallowell Highlights
Hallowell Highlights is a student-generated newspaper for the fictional Hallowell, Massachusetts with mock interviews of characters from After the First Death, along with news reports covering the terrorist attack and Ben Marchand's shooting. Other…
Virginia Beesley's letter to Robert Cormier
Virginia Beesley's typewritten two-page letter to Robert Cormier is an emotional epistle of her reading of After the First Death. She conveys both anger at Cormier for writing the book and admiration for writing it so skillfully. It is not clear…