The Clique

Fiction by Lisi Harrison
Reviewed by Jennifer D.
Not in the NVHS Collection as of this post


Massie Block of the Block Estate is the typical teenager. The only difference between her and the average teenager is the wealth of her father, who is paying for her personal horses, tuition at OCD, the best private school around, her love for shopping and the best style consisting of only the best brands. At the start of Massie’s seventh grade year, her father decides to help out an old, collage friend and his family by moving them in the Block’s guest house. This wouldn’t be a problem if everyone didn’t expect Massie to become best friends with the Lyons’ daughter, Claire, who happens to also be starting seventh grade at OCD. Although Massie’s mother, Kendra, thinks Massie should be warm and welcoming to Claire, Massie just wants to spend her last summer day with her friends, so a short quarrel starts with her mom when she states exactly what’s on her mind, “’They’re dad’s freeloading friends, not mine.’” Will Massie ever learn to become Claire’s friend, or will she never see that just because Claire doesn’t have top style or large sums of money she could still be a great friend?

In The Clique, Harrison introduces the series with the normal teenage girl drama. Harrison shows the sneaky tricks, like three way calls, or red paint splatters, getting you hooked instantly. The common likes Massie has with many other female teenagers, like cell phones, shopping and boys allows you to relate fast and feel as if it’s partly your own story. Also, this story goes though a series of friendship changes as the girls learn who they can and cannot trust. Underneath all the secrets and fancy top of the line clothes, these girls are typical teenagers just like everyone else, whether Massie likes being regular or not.

The Clique is a great, comical book to read, and I often found myself refusing to put it down. No matter how much action I read, a little or a lot, Harrison still left me curious and wanting more. I could never tell if Massie would give in and become Claire’s friend, or keep the lies going and never accepting her. I would have to recommend this book to young teenage girls, because that is exactly who it is about.