Oliver Gasper, often in trouble at school, lives next door to Nicky Chew, who goes through life in a careful manner. Oliver and Nicky are opposites. When Oliver finds an old magazine containing the Indian rope trick invisibility spell, he can't wait to try it. To his surprise, the incantation actually works, and he disappears. He briefly enjoys causing chaos at school, but quickly learns that being unvisible has serious drawbacks.

The kids have "taken pains to avoid each other," but their lives collide unexpectedly when each confronts a crisis. Nicky is paralyzed by the thought that his mother might actually marry a man he loathes. Oliver, unexpectedly invisible and desperate to find the antidote, cannot search for it without drawing unwelcome attention to his nothingness. There are comic scenes in which the invisible boy pays back school bullies for past injustices. As the boys search for the missing magazine, they discover that the antique dealer has been smuggling liquor and doesn't take kindly to snoopers.

When Oliver Gasper discoavers a way to turn himself invisble, he thinks he will have the time of his life. He soon realizes that being invisible is not always fun and games. Befriending seemingly ordinary Nicky he discovers that with a friend, anything is possible (including getting back at an evil man, riding a bike, and saving his family)