Bystander

Bystander (2011) is a teen/young adult novel by James Preller that explores middle school bullying and the factors that enable it. Griffin Connelly, a two-faced bully, uses his charisma and good looks to keep members of his school clique in line as he perpetrates acts of cruelty against weaker classmates. No one stands up to Griffin until Eric Hayes, a newcomer, disrupts the status quo—questioning Griffin’s bullying and the silent complicity of the other students.

The novel was named a Junior Library Guild Selection in 2009 and inspired a stage adaptation titled The Bystander Project.

Plot Summary

13-year-old Eric Hayes has just moved to Bellport, Long Island with his mother and brother after his father, who has schizophrenia, abandoned the family. Eric is playing basketball behind Belmont Central Middle School when a boy covered in a red substance runs past him. At first, Eric thinks the red substance is blood but soon realizes it is ketchup after talking to the boy.

After the boy leaves, a group of three boys and a girl show up on bicycles. A boy with wavy hair, whom Eric describes as “pretty,” asks him if he saw anyone run past him. Eric realizes they are looking for the ketchup boy and denies seeing him. The pretty boy, Griffin Connelly, asks to see Eric’s basketball. After Eric tosses the ball, Griffin asks if he can keep it as a “souvenir.” Eric refuses, but he allows Griffin and his friends to play. After the four children ride away, Griffin returns by himself and tells Eric that he was joking about keeping the ball.

During his first day of classes, Eric witnesses another bullying incident. He hears someone slamming a boy named Hallenback against a locker. Even though Eric hears Griffin’s voice and realizes he must be involved, he ignores the incident. In home base class, he sees David Hallenback and realizes he is the ketchup boy.

In the cafeteria, Griffin asks Eric to sit at his table. Being a newcomer, Eric gladly accepts the invitation. Griffin asks his friend, a boy with buck teeth named Cody, to move over to make room for Eric. Griffin starts an amiable conversation with the lunch aide, Mrs. Rosen, and asks about her dog, Daisy. When she says Daisy passed away, Griffin puts on a sad face and says he is sorry about the dog’s death. Eric senses something off about the interaction: When Mrs. Rosen walks away, Griffin tells Eric that Mrs. Rosen is a rich “old git” and that her dog was a stupid animal that barked all the time.

During an outing, Eric runs into Griffin at the supermarket. Griffin charms Eric’s mother with his friendly demeanor and good manners. When Griffin asks if Eric can hang out with him at the store, Eric’s mother approves. Griffin impresses Eric when he helps some older customers carry their groceries to their cars. However, he steals a pack of gum from one of the cars and tells Eric he deserves it as payment.

Eric and Griffin leave the store and go to the latter’s house. Eric discovers that neither of Griffin’s parents is present. Griffin says his mother is away on a trip and that his father is probably getting drunk at a bar. Eric tells Griffin that his friend Cody looks like a weasel but immediately regrets it. Griffin shows Eric a wooden box of “souvenirs”—including a tooth and a baseball pin. He tells Eric that there is a story behind each item. Eric thinks Griffin is a good listener and considers him a friend despite his “rough edges.”

Griffin shows up to school with a black eye. Cody tells Eric that Griffin’s father is likely responsible. After Hallenback asks about Griffin’s eye, Griffin lures him to a remote part of the playground for a game of “Pretzel.” He physically abuses Hallenback by yanking his wrist and shoving him to the ground. When Eric objects to the bullying, Griffin threatens him. After the playground incident, Eric avoids Griffin.

Griffin shows up at Eric’s house and asks why Eric has been avoiding him. Eric cites the playground incident. Griffin reveals that the tooth in his souvenir collection is his own, and that his father knocked it out. Griffin says that children like Hallenback are destined to be picked on. After Griffin leaves, Eric discovers that one of his CDs and $27 from his brother Rudy’s baseball bank are missing.

Eric runs into fellow student Mary O’Malley while walking a client’s golden retriever (as part of his dog-walking business). She invites him to hang out at the dog park. She tells him that some of the girls are planning a cyberbullying prank against fellow student Chantel Williams, and she sadly shows him a picture of a pig photoshopped as a human girl.

Mr. Floyd, the school counselor, presents a workshop titled “Bullying: Rumors and Gossip.” During the hands-on portion of the workshop, Eric’s group produces a list of strategies for creating a bully-free zone.

Displeased when he hears some of the boys making jokes about Mr. Floyd’s anti-bullying presentation, Mr. Scofield, an English teacher, decides to present his own. He encourages students to think for themselves.

Eric offers Hallenback advice on how to deal with Griffin and his friends’ bullying, suggesting that he talk to someone. Hallenback rejects the idea, saying he is no “rat” and will not go crying to teachers. Hallenback insists he is friends with Griffin’s group, despite Eric pointing out that they do nothing but pick on him.

Hallenback lures Eric to the pet cemetery, saying he has something he wants to show him. Once there, Cody shows up with Griffin and his friends. An angry Cody tells Eric that he knows he called him a weasel; Eric realizes that Griffin told on him. Cody fights Eric, who tries to fight back but is no match for the former’s karate. Hallenback kicks a fallen Eric in the stomach.

After the fight, Eric seeks emotional refuge in his guitar. He writes a letter to his father but decides not to send it. He tries to downplay the fight with his mother, but she contacts the school. The school counselor, Mr. Floyd, calls Eric and Cody into his office and demands that they end their conflict. Eric apologizes to Cody for calling him a weasel, and Cody calls out Hallenback for kicking Eric when he was down. The two agree to a truce.

In the cafeteria, Hallenback sits with Griffin’s group; Mary’s friends rejected her because she reported their cyberbullying. Griffin escalates his bullying of Eric, stealing Eric’s bike and recruiting Hallenback to make a false report about Eric having a knife in his locker. Despite Eric being cleared, Griffin threatens to place something illegal in his locker if he doesn’t steal some coins from Mrs. Rosen’s house—but Eric refuses.

Cody and minor characters Pat and Hakeem return Eric’s bicycle, which Griffin vandalized. Cody says Griffin went too far and offers to fix the bike. Eric senses that Cody and the others are starting to distance themselves from Griffin.

Eric devises a plan to get even with Griffin, with Mary’s help. While Griffin is away at a car show, Eric sneaks into his house through an open back door. He takes off his sneakers to avoid making noise. He sneaks into Griffin’s bedroom, finds the souvenir collection, and takes back his CD and the money stolen from his brother. When Griffin’s father wakes up, Eric fears he will be caught but just manages to escape. When he reunites with Mary, he realizes that he left his sneakers in Griffin’s house.

After Eric’s break-in, Griffin stops bullying him. Griffin never mentions the theft (or speaks to Eric again) but he does show up to school wearing Eric’s sneakers. Eric discovers that Griffin returned Hallenback’s baseball pin and has a new group of friends—including Alexis, the leader of the school’s mean girls.

Eric makes the basketball team and gets a girlfriend. He dreams of winning a game as his father watches from the stands.