A Strange Novel

                                                                             

This novel, set at an elite English prep school and told from two points of view: one of the long-time masters, deeply entrenched in and loyal to the school, and the child of the school's porter/handyman, an outsider longing to be a part of the gilded youth who attend the school.

The novel resonated with me on several levels. I once taught at a prep school (though it was in no way as grandiose as this one and the inter-faculty scheming nothing like.) I also understood the porter's child sense of an outsider looking at an unattainable world. For several years I met classes with the Great Smokies Writing Program at The Asheville School--an expensive and elite boarding school with a glorious campus. At first I found myself wanting to grab every passing student and ask if they knew how fortunate they were to be there. 

But this book. I found myself reading compulsively, caught up in the twists and turns of academic plotting, a most likeable teacher, and the wiles of an exceedingly clever child. 

And then, about midway through, I began to feel a little sickened--as one might having gobbled down unwholesome food. I should have been warned by a blurb that compared the book to Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr. Ripley. Mr. Ripley gave me that same sense of queasiness--not from gratuitous sex or violence but from the pervasive amorality of the main character.

Nevertheless, I persevered. Events were tumbling together and the answers to several questions seemed close at hand. And then there was the most amazing twist--so amazing that I'm going to have to go back and look for any clues that might have hinted at this outcome.

I marvel at the intricacy of the plotting. Quite an interesting novel! Available as an ebook for 1.99

Addendum: I did go back--not precisely a re-read, but paging through paying attention to certain names to see how the deception was managed. 

Brilliantly, that's how. I found my appreciation for the novel growing--to the point that I am tempted to download its sequel. 

Another addendum: I did read the sequel (A Different Class) and quite enjoyed it. Now that I was aware of the author's propensity for trickery, I paid close attention. She still outwitted me,