Old School

· Vintage
4.5
10 reviews
Ebook
208
Pages
Eligible
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About this ebook

The protagonist of Tobias Wolff’s shrewdly—and at times devastatingly—observed first novel is a boy at an elite prep school in 1960. He is an outsider who has learned to mimic the negligent manner of his more privileged classmates. Like many of them, he wants more than anything on earth to become a writer. But to do that he must first learn to tell the truth about himself.

The agency of revelation is the school literary contest, whose winner will be awarded an audience with the most legendary writer of his time. As the fever of competition infects the boy and his classmates, fraying alliances, exposing weaknesses, Old School explores the ensuing deceptions and betrayals with an unblinking eye and a bottomless store of empathy. The result is further evidence that Wolff is an authentic American master.

Ratings and reviews

4.5
10 reviews
A Google user
August 15, 2008
An amazing story of a boys boarding school where the names Frost, Hemingway, and Ginsberg are more commonly heard than Elvis, Lennon, or Kennedy. Brilliantly written; highly recommended.
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Daniel Moon
December 2, 2016
I absolutely loved this book. At first it seemed posh, but once I got over myself realized private school is a culture like any other is, I really got into it and loved what Wolff seemed to say.
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Christine Baker
May 16, 2015
Beautifully written.
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About the author

Tobias Wolff lives in Northern California and teaches at Stanford University. He has received the Rea Award for excellence in the short story, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and the PEN/Faulkner Award.

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