Candyfreak

Candyfreak

Synopsis

Perhaps you remember the whipped splendor of the Choco-Lite or the luscious Caravelle bar or maybe the sublime and perfectly balanced Hershey's Cookies 'n Mint. The Marathon an inimitable rope of caramel covered in chocolate. Oompahs. Bit-O-Choc. The Kit Kat Dark. Steve Almond certainly does. In fact he was so obsessed by the inexplicable disappearance of these bars—where'd they go?—that he embarked on a nationwide journey to uncover the truth about the candy business. There he found an industry ruled by huge conglomerates where the little guys the last remaining link to the glorious boom years of the candy bar in America struggle to survive. Visiting the candy factories that produce the Twin Bing the Idaho Spud the Goo Goo Cluster the Valomilk and a dozen other quirky bars Almond finds that the world of candy is no longer a sweet haven. Today's precious few regional candy makers mount daily battles against corporate greed paranoia and that good old American compulsion: crushing the little guy. Part candy porn part candy polemic part social history part confession Candyfreak explores the role candy plays in our lives as both source of pleasure and escape from pain. By turns ecstatic comic and bittersweet Candyfreak is the story of how Steve Almond grew up on candy—and how for better and worse candy has grown up too.

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