In this stunning first novel, Graham Gardner pays homage to Robert Cormier’s great The Chocolate War with a story about a boy trying to survive in a school run by a vicious secret society. But where Jerry Renault resists the system, only to succumb to it in the end, Elliot Sutton is more eager to do its bidding, and doesn’t take action to resist until it is almost too late. At first Elliot had hoped that it would be different at Holminster High. He carries the fear always--the fear of the beatings and much worse that made his life hell at his old school. But at Holminster High, Elliot can be the kind of person who avoids trouble by fitting in. He watches himself carefully every moment and shapes himself to be noticed just enough in the right way. Ironically, his strategy backfires when the Guardians (the secret three who control and terrorize Holminster High) select him as a candidate to be trained for their group. After school, Elliot finds a friend in outcast Ben, but both boys know they can never acknowledge each other in the halls. When Elliot falls in love with bright, outspoken Louise, he feels he must wear yet another identity for her. Elliot sinks into numb isolation behind his masks when a crucial decision pushes him to take back his self with an act that could cost him dearly. Inventing Elliot is a heartrending, engrossing novel to be pondered and discussed. (Ages 12 and older)
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