Captains of Harley: A School Story

At Harley School, reputation is earned on the rugby pitch. Rouse, humorous and enigmatic, has set his sights on one thing: the captain's armband. But the road to leadership is paved with rivals, teammates, and the quiet boy in the corner named Bobbie Carr, whose own story begins to matter more than Rouse ever expected. As the season unfolds, bonds form and fracture in the locker room, on the field, and in the late-night conversations that define a boyhood. Cleaver captures the raw intensity of adolescence: the thirst for recognition, the surprising loyalty that emerges from competitive friendship, and the discovery that becoming a leader means more than wearing a badge. For readers who cherish the great British school stories, this is a portrait of growing up where every match feels like a referendum on who you are and who you're becoming.