In the novel The Clique by Lisi Harrison, Massie Block and her three best friends Alicia, Dylan, and Kristen (dubbed the Pretty Committee) struggle to hold their place at Octavian Country Day School when their reputation is threatened by Claire Lyons, the daughter of Massie’s father’s old friend. Claire and her family recently moved into the Block’s guesthouse, and Massie had been the opposite of welcoming. Because of her untimely arrival, Massie had missed out on the Pretty Committee’s Labor Day shopping trip, and that was so not acceptable. Instead, she was cooped up in her sprawling estate with the Lyons family.
Much like Emma Jean Lazarus Fell in Love, this novel is written in the third-person, alternating between Massie’s and Claire’s point-of-view. The author takes note of how each character would perceive each situation, which are often on opposite ends of the spectrum. Massie was raised in Westchester County, New York, one of the wealthiest counties in America. Claire is from Kissimmee, Florida, a quaint town just west of Orlando. Despite it being a perfectly suitable residential area, Massie Block does not approve.
As Claire becomes more acquainted with the Pretty Committee, she learns that beauty is hardly skin-deep. Despite their flawless complexions, their hearts were anything but. Harrison develops each girl’s relationship with one another through both traditional dialogue and instant messaging. In a revenge plot against Massie, Claire sneaks into her bedroom several nights in a row and poses as her on via instant messaging:
“They made it up the stairs and into Massie’s room without a problem. Todd guarded the door while Claire went straight to the computer. She lowered the volume and composed her first IM. This one was to BigRedHead. It had to be Dylan.
Massiekur: What’s up?
BigRedHead: Biology homework ☹
Massiekur: What are you wearing to your party?
BigRedHead: Maybe a suede mini from Barney’s catalog, pg 23
Massiekur: Think your legs will look good in a mini??
Claire couldn't believe she had stooped so low. In a billion years she never thought she’d be the kind of person who would go out of their way to make someone feel bad about their weight. But then again, she’d never imagined she’d be in any of the situations she’d been in as of lately” (Harrison, 153).
It was only a matter of days before the Pretty Committee discovered the true perpetrator behind the insulting instant messages. This news, however, impressed them more than angered them:
“‘I can’t believe she had you guys going for so long on IM,’ Massie said.
‘I can’t believe she snuck into your room every night without you catching her,’ Kristen said.
‘I know, it’s pretty impressive.’ Massie gave a distant smile. She looked up and saw her friends looking at her like she was crazy. ‘I mean, I’m just surprised she even came up with the idea. You know, because she seems like such a goody-goody. It seems like something we would do.’” (Harrison, 177).
Massie did have a point, Harrison developed Claire’s character brilliantly. Before being admitted into the Pretty Committee, she befriended Layne. Despite being related to Chris Abeley, Massie’s ninth grade crush, Layne Abeley was not respected by the Pretty Committee. However, upon offering Claire a seat on her first day at Octavian Country Day, they became friends immediately. But when Claire is invited to one of Massie’s exclusive Friday night sleepovers, she cancels her plans with Layne to be included. It is at this point in the story when the reader understands how important it is to Claire to be accepted by this clique, and the measures she will take to achieve her goal.
