Both Francis and Larry have received the Silver Star medal for bravery in combat yet both also have an element of selfishness in their motivation.

When she asks Francis what his plans are, he gives the answer of one of his fellow veterans from the St. Heroes, published in 1998, is a novel written by American author Robert Cormier who is known for addressing darker subjects in his books for young adults. Back in the present time, Larry resurfaces in Frenchtown, and Francis puts a pistol in his pocket and tracks him down. That night, contemplating suicide, Francis climbed the steeple of the town church, but ultimately decided that to take his own life in such an obvious way would only disgrace his family.Larry was the first young man of Monument to enlist in the armed forces, leaving the Wreck Center closed in the wake of his departure. Heroes is a teen novel and is a story of Francis Joseph Cassavant, who at the age of eighteen has been horribly disfigured when he lost most of his face jumping on a grenade in France during WWII to save some of his fellow comrades. This is seen in chapter 5 where Francis talks about people, renovating the 'Wreck Centre', who had been hired under a new municipal program.

Through various flashbacks, Francis relates the story of his simple and innocent childhood, which was centered on his quest to win the affection of Nicole Renard. The sense of complete loneliness and isolation Francis goes through are painful, and I felt for him and Nicole even though character development wasn’t really Robert Cormier’s strong suite, and his female characters were particularly lacking. Then he thinks of Nicole one last time, along with the gun in his duffel bag and the possibility of his own suicide. Also, the majority of my English Lit class didn't enjoy this book as they had expected it to be intense. This, my seventh read of the year, is a remarkable book, short and light but it packs an emotional punch.

Some critics have suggested that the character of Francis Cassavant is based on the author Robert Cormier. Francis signs up to become a soldier at the age of fifteen and is brutally injured when a bomb blows off his face. The book’s purpose was to show how much betrayal, love, hate, guilt, and forgiveness can impact a person. By tearing down the mask of heroism, the book exposes the selfishness, cowardice, and malevolence that often lies underneath. His face was permanently disfigured, but he ultimately survived and was awarded the Silver Star medal in recognition of his bravery.