58 pages • 1 hour read
Gordon KormanSwindle
Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2008A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Chapters 11-15Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 11 Summary
Griffin knocks on the glass and wakes Ben, who successfully bypasses the security system and opens the door. Griffin is surprised that Ben fell asleep while in the crate. Ben asks if Luthor gave Griffin trouble, and Griffin tells him that Luthor was not there. When they look behind the register for the safe, they realize it is gone. Griffin is stunned because in all his contingency plans, he had never considered that the safe might not be there.
Chapter 12 Summary
Chapter 12 switches back to Ben’s point of view. He sadly watches prospective buyers visit Griffin’s house. Griffin’s parents need excuses to be out of the house while the realtor is working, so they take the boys to parks, malls, carnivals, and other activities. On the way from one of these trips, Griffin notices a black guard dog lunge at them from behind a homeowner’s fence. This encounter sparks that idea that Luthor may be guarding the baseball card at Swindle’s house. Griffin gains renewed confidence and redoubles his efforts on making a new plan to steal the card.
Chapter 13 Summary
The boys discover that Swindle’s house has even higher security than his heavily guarded store. In addition, a nosy neighbor named Eli Mulroney sits on his porch day and night directly across the street. Mr. Martinez overhears the boys discussing the robbery but believes they are working on a creative writing project. He suggests they go to town hall to find blueprints of houses to create a setting for their heist. They know Swindle’s address, so Griffin believes they will find the house’s exact layout plan.
Chapter 14 Summary
The boys can’t get the plans for Swindle’s house, but the building department clerk gives them the plans and address for an identical house. Pretending that Ben is injured and that they need to use the phone, the boys con their way into the house. Griffin learns that the bathroom skylight opens by means of a pole and decides that will be the point of access for their heist.
Chapter 15 Summary
With his plan complete, Griffin delivers invitations to his prospective team members: Pitch the rock climber, who will climb to the skylight; Melissa the computer whiz, who will break through security; Logan the actor, who will distract Eli Mulroney; and Savannah the animal lover, who will take care of Luthor. They meet in a Phys Ed storage room, where Griffin reveals his plan, promising to split the $1 million equally six ways. Each of the students thinks of something they would love to do with the money; only Savannah continues to demur, insisting that stealing is wrong. Griffin counters that Swindle took advantage of them because they are kids, and they have to steal the card back on principle.
Chapters 11-15 Analysis
These chapters detail the final phase of Griffin’s planning and the beginning of its execution. One of the major themes in Swindle is that adults should take children seriously. Despite the book’s cheerful tone, the plan Griffin develops is quite dangerous. It is impressively detailed, and by recruiting his friends to participate, Griffin is risking their safety and involving them in a crime. These chapters showcase Griffin’s leadership qualities and his insistence on his own point of view. Whenever one of his friends brings up a reasonable objection, he doubles down on the idea that they will be getting revenge not just on Swindle, but on every adult who has doubted them. Griffin’s motivation also comes from his belief in his duty to save his family and his obsession with creating the perfect plan. In the speech he gives to his friends at the end of Chapter 16, he tries to convince them that the plan is not as dangerous or crazy as it sounds. He appeals to their sense of pride, telling them that everyone can bring special skills to the project. At the end of the chapter, Griffin has finally achieved his goal of gaining a dedicated group of followers.
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By Gordon Korman
