TOO COOL

TOO COOL Duff Brenna (Doubleday, $22.95) In this novel about a rebel without a cause -- but with plenty of gripes -- Brenna captures the imploding energy of an intelligent teenager with nothing to lose. After escaping from reform school, Elbert Earl Evans -- nicknamed Triple E -- steals a car, then flees through the wintry Colorado Rockies with his girlfriend. When the two get trapped in a blizzard and face possible death, Triple E remembers how his cow-slaughtering dad, boxing coach, and sexy English teacher let him down, and feels repentant for his violent ways. But at the disappointing finale, the novel's deeper question -- is there hope for this guy? -- is evaded with the same facility with which Triple E dodges the law. B-