The Pirate Review - I am the cheese

Mysterious, riveting and ultimately horrifying, I am the cheese is nevertheless hard to put down

Major spoiler warning

The farmer in the dell,
The farmer in the dell,
Heigh-ho, the merry-o,
The farmer in the dell

Most children in North America recognize this nursery rhyme song, with its repetitive verses: "the farmer takes a wife," "the wife takes he child," "the child takes the nurse," "the nurse takes the dog," "the dog takes the cat," "the cat takes the rat," "the rat takes the cheese" and finally "the cheese stands alone." These largely innocent, meaningless words take on a very different cast, however, when seen through the pages of Robert Cormier's young adult novel, I am the cheese. First published in 1977, not long after the paranoia and scandal of the Nixon administration had come to a head, this book has aged remarkably well despite some dated language ("square," for example) and stock characters that have become so commonplace they are now a little shopworn.

This makes little difference, though, as the plot directly takes hold of readers and pulls them into the world of fifteen-year-old Adam Farmer. Like most people, Adam has a relatively clear sense of self—he's shy, something of a loner, an aspiring writer, growing up in small-town Massachusetts with his parents, and falling in love with feisty prankster Amy Hertz—until one day a chance phone call from Amy begins to make him question some of the stranger aspects of his life. Slowly, he begins to spy on his parents, making connections to a secret that, once completely revealed, shatters his very identity and threatens to destroy his family.

Vague enough for ya? Well hey, I don't want to give EVERYTHING away—and I am the cheese is very much a book of layers to be explored. In many ways, it's also a book that requires a second reading—this is a mystery thriller, and the text gives a number of subtle clues that may not be picked up on until the reader knows where to look for them. Even then, many questions remain—this book is filled not only with concrete, objective places and occurrences, but with subjective wanderings through the recesses of Adam Farmer's fractured mind, and it's often very difficult to tell the two apart.

Adding to the confusion is a three-pronged narrative style: a first-person account of Adam making a journey from Monument, Massachusetts to Rutterburg, Vermont by bicycle; a transcript of a series of taped conversations between Adam and a psychiatrist figure who identifies himself as "Brint;" and a series of third-person flashbacks about Adam's life and experiences. Although sometimes confusing, this approach pays off; it actually allows Cormier to give much more detailed information than if he had simply chosen one style of storytelling.

One of the more interesting aspects of I am the cheese, at least for teenage readers, is that it adds a real twist to the common adolescent themes of loneliness, alienation and the quest for personal identity—not only is Adam searching for his sense of self in the metaphorical sense, but he literally does not know his real identity or his origins. His family's experiences have unfortunately but deliberately cut him adrift from the usual moorings of identification; in a very real sense, he is unable to confide in others or control his own destiny.

SPOILERS FOLLOW

DANGER
WARNING
AHOOOGA

OK, for those of you who have actually read this book, a few lingering questions and one interesting "Easter egg" I've discovered:

How much of Adam's bicycle journey occurs in reality? Did he actually interact with the people and see the places on the route (notably the deserted inn), or is it all taking place in his head, peopled by the inhabitants of the asylum where he apparently now resides?

Is Adam's medication designed to make him forget, or to help him remember? How much of his rational mind is left?

Was Mr. Grey/Thompson actually responsible for the death of Adam's parents, or did he simply "tip off" the killers? Is Grey the true identity of "Brint" in the interview sessions? (Note the use of "T" to identify Brint.)

What became of Martha, the cloistered nun who is Mrs. Farmer's sister?

What happened to Amy and her family? Did Adam actually contact Amy's old number, given to another person, or were his calls being re-routed through the switchboard operator at the asylum?

Rutterburg, Vermont is described as a "ghost town" near the end of the book. Where are the people?

Nifty-keen Easter egg: Adam uses a specific telephone number to try to call Amy Hertz. Alert readers will notice this is a valid Boston-area exchange; it was actually Robert Cormier's home phone number. In several interviews, Mr. Cormier said that teens and adults who had read the book would call him—sometimes asking to speak to Amy—and he would usually be happy to discuss the book with them. (Please don't try this now, as Mr. Cormier recently passed away.)

If you've read the book and you'd like to discuss some of these ideas or others you've come across, please leave comments—I'd love to discuss this book further.

SPOILERS OVER—PLEASE RESUME READING

I am the cheese is an intriguing, imaginative, sometimes horrifying book that illustrates not only the search for identity, but the callous, sometimes brutal behaviors exhibited by faceless organizations. Due to the subject matter, some scenes of violence and a few off-color words, I would recommend it only to readers in junior high and older.