Chocolate Fever

Title: Chocolate Fever
Author: Robert Kimmel Smith
Genre: Modern Fantasy (chapter book)

Chocolate Fever is about a bay named Henry Green who loves chocolate so much that he eats it for every meal. His parents, brother, and sister all spoiled Henry and indulged his chocolate addiction. But one day in class, Henry notices little brown spots chocolate smelling spots all over his body. Thinking that he has contracted some rare disease, Henry goes to the school nurse to be examined. The nurse is puzzled by his condition, and takes him to the hospital to be checked out further. After being examined by many doctors, it is announced that Henry has "chocolate fever". Scared by this diagnosis, Henry runs away from the hospital into the city. He eventually is picked up by a truck driver named Mac, and just before Mac convinces Henry to go back home, Mac's truck is hijacked. The hijackers take Mac and Henry to their hideout and when things start looking bad for Mac and Henry's safety, a pack of dogs bursts in from their attraction to Henry's delicious chocolate scent. The hijackers are arrested and Henry and Mac go to a local confectioner who gives Henry "vanilla pills" to cure Henry's chocolate fever. Henry returns home and is greeted by his parents, with a new found skepticism of chocolate. However, the close of the book suggests that Henry may pick up a new kind of rare illness; cinnamon fever.

Chocolate Fever would be a great book to use for making inferences. The chapters in the book are always left on "cliffhangers" where the readers are unsure of what could possibly happen next. In addition to making inferences, Chocolate Fever is also a great book to use to discuss character development. The mindsets of many of the characters change after the course of the book's events, which leaves ample opportunities to discuss why and how the characters behaviors changed.