I listened to this on my commute to work and overall I really liked the book. I agree with a comment here that Lee’s extreme insecurity was difficult to take at times, though certainly we can all relate to parts of this book. The end seemed somehow less satisfying than I wanted it to be, maybe I expected more than just the typical wrap up of where-are-they-now? The book did totally capture the way East Coast wealth appears to an outsider and though I didn’t make it to the East until college, I felt the book rang true and the characters came alive.

If you went to boarding school, especially if you are female, I think you will really enjoy reading this book.

http://markbernstein.org/Books24.html#Prep

Mixed. I definitely enjoyed reading this book. It was quick and fun. I think Curtis Sittenfeld captured the mind of an insecure 14 year old girl quite well. I found Lee’s insecurity so aggravating that I can’t love this book, but I’m not sure how much of that is the fault of the book and how much is my general dislike for the character. I think I would’ve rather read a book about Martha, Dede, or Sin-Jun.

I found myself consumed by this book and wanting to read it in any spare moment I had. And overall, I think it was good, but not great.

I kept waiting for something big and meaningful to happen, but it was very episodic, which maybe was the point. It is about high school, after all. The main character’s thoughts and feelings were painfully close to some of the feelings I had in high school, so I enjoyed it in the sense of knowing I wasn’t alone in what I felt then. What was kind of depressing about it though was that it also made me realize that remnants of those feelings are still with me — some of the character’s thoughts and behaviors reminded me of some of my own recent thoughts and behaviors. I have come a long way since high school, but seeing my current self in a high school character is definitely a kick in the pants to “get confident, stupid”, if you know what I mean.