One more off the night table

I finished reading Curtis Sittenfeld's "Prep" yesterday and I still do not know what I think about it.  I picked up the book because I too attended a private school in the 80's (albeit not a boarding school) and wanted to know if Sittenfeld really captured the "unsugared truths about adolescence, alienation and the sociology of privilege" as Wally Lamb wrote in the blurb.   

The first section of the book, focusing on Lee Fiora's freshman year as a scholarship student at the prestigious Ault School, completely grabbed me.  Her character was so filled with that terrible teenage anxiety and the insatiable desire to be viewed as "normal" that you felt Sittenfeld was writing, if not from memory, then certainly from the heart.  And I have always been fascinated with class distinctions in a so-called classless society (it's why Edith Wharton's stuff is sooo good) and the author does a fabulous job of exploring this issue from the "have-not" (in the Ault context) perspective.

But as the book continued, I found myself wanting to give the protagonist a Cher in Moonstruck-style "Snapoutofit" slap.  Because Lee did not seem to change or learn or grow.  She seemed forever the passive victim.

Now because the book is narrated by a slightly older Lee remembering her Ault experience, one can only assume that she herself has come to realize that she had some accountablity for her tough time at school.  She alienated the wealthier students, she allowed her crush Cross Sugarman to treat her badly, she decided to not get involved with anything, she decided to give the interview to The Times.  Because if she did not realize these things, one assumes that the narrative would have a very different tone and Lee would have been a more sympathetic character.  Clearly the change in Lee happens after her years at Ault. 

But although Sittenfeld wrapped up the story and granted us closure thorugh her use of narrative, I still found the end of the book to be unsatisfying.  It was a little like Tom Perrota's Little Children where at first I liked it, and then I was impressed by its ambition to shed light on broader societal issues, but ultimately I was disappointed. (For the record, I was not a Catcher in the Rye person either).

If you attended high school in the 80's this is an enjoyable read (remember the Laura Ashley dresses everyone wore) but it did not make the lasting impression on me that I hoped it might. 

Comments

[Katie]

LOVED Prep. Just finished it. I went to an all-girl, Catholic, uniform wearing school in the eighties, and boy could I relate. Just recently realized that Curtis Sittenfeld is a woman. I was wondering how the author could nail the teenage angst thing so accurately being a guy, and lo and behold, he's not a guy!

[Rosemary]

Thanks for the review. I've been wanting to read Prep since it seems to be everywhere these days -- I think Jennifer Weiner was even keeping track of all the "Prep" mentions in newspapers everywhere, because it did seem a little excessive. I felt the same way you did about Little Children (and I'm not a Catcher fan either) so I think I'll wait for my library to have "Prep" rather than invest in it. Thanks again!