The following collection of thematically related readings is available in The Chocolate War and Related Readings in McDougal Littell's Literature Connections series.

I took my Power in my Hand by Emily Dickinson
Summary: The speaker of this poem compares her struggle against the world to David's biblical struggle against Goliath.

Some Opposites of Good by Leslie Norris
(from The Girl from Cardigan, ©1988)
Summary: Mark likes the challenges of school, but his friend Useless never pays much attention to school or anything besides his own imagination. Mark becomes disillusioned when the school's strict headmaster cruelly and needlessly punishes both boys.

It's Fun Being in Power interview by Maria Hinojosa
Summary: Seventeen-year-old Coki has been running with crews since he was eight. In this interview, he reflects on power, greed, and government, as well as on the violence in his home and on the streets.

Breaking Bones by Philip Cioffari
(from The Worcester Review, Volume 11, No. 1, © 1989)
Summary: This poem describes schoolyard bullying that haunts the victim into adulthood.

White Places by Mary Flanagan
(from Bad Girls, © 1984)
Summary: Three girls pick on the youngest and weakest in their "club," eventually endangering her life.

Excerpt from Bad Company by Rebecca Barry
(from Seventeen magazine, © 1994)
Summary: This article from a popular teen magazine discusses destructive cliques and gives advice on how to deal with them.