The School for Invisible Boys

November 13, 2023
An 11-year-old navigating friendship troubles, mercurial blended family dynamics, and questions surrounding his sexual identity wishes to disappear—and abruptly does—in this heartwarming adventure by Hutchinson (Howl). Hector Griggs, who attends St. Lawrence Catholic School for Boys, isn’t a sports star like his older stepbrother. Instead, Hector prefers solitary activities such as reading, playing piano, and hanging out with his only friend, Blake. But Blake’s new pals constantly bully Hector, and when a major fight puts Blake and Hector’s friendship on the outs, Hector discovers that he can turn himself invisible at will. Now undetectable, he encounters invisible classmate Orson, who everyone believes has been missing for three years. As rumors of ghosts and rampaging monsters start swirling around school, Hector must save Orson and win back Blake from his unsavory new crew, all while evading frightening creatures. A subplot involving an undercover agent from a supernatural organization is somewhat thinly developed. Hutchinson nevertheless populates this optimistic novel with an organically diverse cast that helps to ferry insightful lessons about empathetic listening and problem-solving, broadening one’s horizons, and dealing with bullies, delivered via an entertaining series opener. Ages 8–12. Agent: Katie Shea Boutillier, Donald Maas Literary.

November 1, 2023
Grades 6-8 In a tale that doesn't hang together too well but features a spectacularly lurid monster and young folk with intriguing supernatural abilities, Hutchinson plants sixth-grader Hector at a parochial boys' school where he hears disembodied voices, his closest friend turns into a vicious bully in the wake of a tentative request to become boyfriends, and Hector discovers that he can transport himself into a dimension where lost items go to become unseen, unheard, and even totally forgotten (sometimes, by some people, as convenient to the plot). When Hector also discovers that he shares that interstitial space with a glutinous fear monster who has been enabling bullies and feeding on the pain of their victims, he recruits a surprising number of improbably credulous schoolmates in a vague scheme to corner the monster. If the climax collapses in a heap with the timely arrival of a secret society of monster hunters, a deus ex machina if ever there was one, there are still enough creepy bits and quirky twists to keep readers engaged.

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December 1, 2023
When bullying triggers Hector's unsuspected ability to turn invisible, it seems like a superpower--but he's not invisible to the monster lurking at school. At home, sixth grader Hector faces bullying stepbrothers and a stepfather who values sports over piano. He was reconciled to his Catholic boys' school thanks to best friend Blake--until Hector asked Blake to be his boyfriend, and Blake (despite having two moms) turned into a homophobic bully. After Hector discovers his power of invisibility while hiding from Blake, he encounters former pupil Orson, who's been stuck there for years being invisible and pursued by the tentacled gelim, who entraps vulnerable students and feeds on their fears. As a gay boy and a Black boy (respectively) in a predominantly white school, Hector and Orson are easy targets. Wanting to save Orson and defeat the gelim, Hector finds allies in school librarian Mr. Morhill and Samantha, Mr. Morhill's niece, a fellow student others perceive as a boy; Orson is also an active participant who supports Hector. Throughout his ordeals, Hector still hopes Blake will return to normal. This well-structured story is threaded with themes of misjudgment, misunderstanding, forgetting, and forgiveness. Both the visible and invisible worlds are evocatively described, and the characters are believably flawed. Despite mitigating circumstances, Hector's swift forgiveness of Blake may sit uneasily with some readers, and while the gelim is suitably terrifying, the convoluted details about how it functions may be confusing. Invisibility offers no protection in this well-paced, multilayered horror story. (Paranormal. 9-12)

COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2024
Hutchinson's (Howl, rev. 7/22) middle-grade debut is a captivating combination of dark fantasy and tween drama built on a cast of nuanced characters, methodical world-building, and suspenseful storytelling. Things go quickly downhill for Hector, a sixth grader at St. Lawrence's Catholic School for Boys, after he asks his best friend, Blake, to be his boyfriend. Blake's response is beyond hurtful, delivered with physical violence and homophobic name-calling ("he called me freak, except freak wasn't the word he used"). Hector retaliates by lighting Blake's science project on fire, leading to a harrowing chase scene through a church that, shockingly, results in Hector turning invisible. Layers of intrigue unfold, including Hector's friendship with a ghost-like student; the puzzling arrival of a girl (who no one seems to notice is a girl) to the all-boys school; and the mysterious presence of a tentacled, student-abducting monster. Multiple secondary characters, close calls, and red herrings provide Hector not only with opportunities to better understand his newfound power but also with a sense of self as a sensitive, queer, and kind-hearted kid in a world that is often poisoned against difference. Hutchinson's complex story line is dense with bewildering ideas yet is tempered by easily digestible chapters that often leave readers at the edge of a new discovery. While the novel is a complete story, the final page suggests continued adventures. Patrick Gall

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

January 1, 2024
Hutchinson's (Howl, rev. 7/22) middle-grade debut is a captivating combination of dark fantasy and tween drama built on a cast of nuanced characters, methodical world-building, and suspenseful storytelling. Things go quickly downhill for Hector, a sixth grader at St. Lawrence's Catholic School for Boys, after he asks his best friend, Blake, to be his boyfriend. Blake's response is beyond hurtful, delivered with physical violence and homophobic name-calling ("he called me freak, except freak wasn't the word he used"). Hector retaliates by lighting Blake's science project on fire, leading to a harrowing chase scene through a church that, shockingly, results in Hector turning invisible. Layers of intrigue unfold, including Hector's friendship with a ghost-like student; the puzzling arrival of a girl (who no one seems to notice is a girl) to the all-boys school; and the mysterious presence of a tentacled, student-abducting monster. Multiple secondary characters, close calls, and red herrings provide Hector not only with opportunities to better understand his newfound power but also with a sense of self as a sensitive, queer, and kind-hearted kid in a world that is often poisoned against difference. Hutchinson's complex story line is dense with bewildering ideas yet is tempered by easily digestible chapters that often leave readers at the edge of a new discovery. While the novel is a complete story, the final page suggests continued adventures.

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)