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Old School [Paperback]

Tobias Wolff
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Aug 31 2004 Vintage Contemporaries
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.

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From Publishers Weekly

A scholarship boy at a New England prep school grapples with literary ambition and insecurity in this lucid, deceptively sedate novel, set in the early 1960s and narrated by the unnamed protagonist from the vantage point of adulthood. Each year, the school hosts a number of visiting writers, and the boys in the top form are allowed to compete for a private audience by composing a poem or story. The narrator judges the skills of his competitors, avidly exposing his classmates' weaknesses and calculating their potential ("I knew better than to write George off.... He could win.... Bill was a contender"). His own chances are hurt by his inability to be honest with himself and examine his ambivalent feelings about his Jewish roots. After failing to win audiences with Robert Frost and Ayn Rand, he is determined to be chosen by the last and best guest, legendary Ernest Hemingway. The anxiety of influence afflicts all the boys, but in crafting his final literary offering, the narrator discovers inspiration in imitation, finding his voice in someone else's. The novel's candid, retrospective narration ruefully depicts its protagonist's retreat further and further behind his public facade ("I'd been absorbed so far into my performance that nothing else came naturally"). Beneath its staid trappings, this is a sharply ironic novel, in which love of literature is counterbalanced by bitter disappointment (as one character bluntly puts it, "[Writing] just cuts you off and makes you selfish and doesn't really do any good"). Wolff, an acclaimed short story writer (The Night in Question, etc.) and author of the memoir This Boy's Life, here offers a delicate, pointed meditation on the treacherous charms of art.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-The unnamed narrator of this coming-of-age story set in 1960 is a scholarship student at a prestigious New England prep school that has a tradition of inviting literary stars to the campus. Prior to the visit, the seniors are requested to write a piece to be "judged" by the guest. The winner is given a private meeting with the literary luminary and the story is published in the school paper. The narrator, having missed out on an audience with Robert Frost and Ayn Rand, is determined to meet with Ernest Hemingway. Much of this quiet novel is about writing and love of the written word. Merits of The Fountainhead or "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening" are discussed by their authors and the students, and readers glean some information on the writing process and the cult of personality. In his fervent desire to be chosen, the narrator "borrows" an idea and reveals a secret about his heritage that he has carefully hidden. He wins, but the results of his story's publication are disastrous and his life is forever changed. The events and ideas in this thoughtful and thought-provoking novel remain with readers after the story is over and could provide meat for discussion. Teens will identify with the protagonist and internalize ideas on creativity as well as honesty and the importance of seemingly small decisions or occurrences in life.-Susan H. Woodcock, Fairfax County Public Library, Chantilly, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Customer Reviews

Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars I Don't See a Classic Here July 15 2004
Format:Hardcover
Mr. Wolff's writing is superb. By far it is the best part of this book. Unfortunately, what plot there was was thin as well as the character/narrator. There were passages that made reference to narrator's supposed awakenings and new awareness of his self, but I frankly did not see much progress in him.

Parts of the book read as if essays had been patched together. There is an interesting portion of the book devoted to a dean of the school that did not move the plot forward nor give any greater understanding of the narrator. It was probably the best part of the book and the only character delved into with any depth. However, it seemed unrelated to the story line - such as it was - and did not lead to any greater understanding of the narrator.

Another portion of the book related to plagiarism. It suddenly happened, was explored very little and seemed to be passed over as a minor incident in the narrator's life. Again, it seemed like an essay patched into the book.

As can be seen by the book descriptions, much of the book centers around authors who would visit the school. Students competed to write the winning story or poem. Much of the descriptions and excerpts from these young authors were cleverly done and amusing - not in a comedic sense but in how they related to the celebrity author's works.

One aspect of the book I found to be extremely presumptuous. Three authors were came, or were to come to the school: Frost, Rand and Hemingway. Mr. Wolff gives them pages of monologue (especially Frost and Rand) in which they espouse their personal philosophies - some of which were not flattering. I find there is a slippery slope when using real figures in fiction and I thought Mr. Wolff had slid down that slope at his peril. What experience does he have with these people to paint such pictures of them and put those words in their mouths? Especially such unflattering words and pictures?

What did not disappoint, however, as noted, was the writing. Mr. Wolff writes a fine clear, concise prose that is enjoyable to read. Although I can not strongly recommend this book, I will read his other works based upon the promise of that writing.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars The best book I've read so far this year Jun 17 2004
Format:Hardcover
For the handful of impatient readers out there who have barked at me for recommending 500+ page epic novels such as The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay (three years ago) and Middlesex (last year), this book is for you. Weighing in at just under 200 pages, this novel is just as much a heavyweight as much lengthier works of literature that I have sparred with this year. John Updike's The Early Stories, for example, a massive and brilliant collection of some of the best short fiction out there, had me up against the ropes for the better part of two months. In contrast, Old School can be read in the better part of an afternoon. And yet despite its meager size, as quality literature this book could go toe-to-toe for twelve rounds with pretty much any book out there.

First and foremost this is a book for book-lovers, for readers who treasure literature and writing as essential elements of our humanity. It is a book about writers, about famous ones like Ayn Rand and Ernest Hemingway and Robert Frost and about young, aspiring ones at an east coast boarding school in the early 1960s. At this school, students compete for an individual audience with a visiting writer - the student who submits the best short story or poem, judged by the famous writer, wins the prize.

But this book is more than just an ode to great writers and great writing. It is a novel about morals and ethics, and about the gray areas that cloud our judgment. It is a novel about the development of human character, about the differences that separate us and the ties that bond us together. It is at times humorous, at other times tragic, and still at other times triumphant. But throughout, it is undeniably honest and human.

So go ahead - open this book and smell the September leaves as they fall on this school campus. Feel the excitement in the air - the excitement of being young, the excitement of learning, the excitement of growing up and being on the verge of adulthood.

A 2003 National Book Critics Circle Award finalist, Old School is without question one of the best books of the past year.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Go to "School" Jun 16 2004
By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAME TOP 10 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
Tobias Wolff's "Old School" is one of those books for people who love literature. Dedicated to the soul of twentieth-century literature -- the good, the bad, and the arrogant -- it's a spare, deceptively simple book with some startling twists.

It takes place at an elite prep school in the 1960s, when the world was shifting under people's feet. A working-class boy secures a scholarship, and manages to pass himself off as one of the carelessly moneyed types who populate the school, hiding his middle-class Catholic/Jewish background. He and his classmates adore the (then-modern) classics, and are thrilled when major writers are called on to judge writing competitions at their school.

But the boy doesn't make an impression on Robert Frost. And because of a nasty cold, he can't even get into a competition judged by Ayn Rand. But when he learns that Ernest Hemingway -- his literary hero -- is the next judge, he's determined to catch the great man's attention. But to create a true-to-life story, he delves into a real-life story from his own school -- with disastrous results.

Don't read "Old School" if you need a lot of thrills. Like the school itself, "Old School" is a quiet, restrained book. And without preaching or being arrogant, Wolff manages to show us how important honesty of all kinds is to good literature. And at the same time, he can give his straightforward story twists and new dimensions.

Wolff shows exceptional insight into literature -- and how a teenage boy sees it. For example, the narrator becomes enamored of Ayn Rand's books at one point. Then he meets the author herself, and her arrogance and disdain strip away his appreciation for her works -- he sees how writers like Hemingway focus on people who may be ordinary, but are magnificent in their ordinariness.

Wolff's writing is spare and quiet, and his characters are sort of the same. There's the narrator, a naive young teen boy who grows up a lot over the course of the book -- even if he is the least alive of the characters -- the quirky classmates and the imposing Dean. And he does a wonderful job of translating Frost, Rand and Hemingway into his own words: Frost is faux-humble, Rand is unabashedly hypocritical and self-absorbed, and Hemingway is endearingly rambly.

"Old School" is an ode to good literature, and the "old schools" of the mid-20th century. A quiet, nostalgia-laden and surprisingly poignant book, this is a solid and satisfying read.

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Most recent customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Witty, elegant, brilliant
If you enjoy novels that take on unusual forms (think McCrae's Bark of the Dogwood), then Tobias Wolff's Old School is for you. Read more
Published on Jun 8 2004
5.0 out of 5 stars A Flawless Masterpiece
Those of us (and I am one) who have read Tobias Woolf's wonderful memoir, THIS BOY'S LIFE, will no doubt love OLD SCHOOL, but, also like me, they will probably have a bit of a... Read more
Published on May 28 2004 by Totally Anonymous
4.0 out of 5 stars Literary Nostalgia
As a long-time fan of Tobias Wolff's short fiction, I opened this, his first novel, with much anticipation, and was quickly rewarded with an elegant, nostalgic tale of a prep... Read more
Published on May 27 2004 by Debbie Lee Wesselmann
1.0 out of 5 stars Beyond boring!!
This book is one of the worst I have ever read. It is boring beyond belief and just rambles on. I simply don't understand how anybody can consider this good writing. Read more
Published on April 28 2004 by Palisades Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Very well written
A compelling story, written well and with reverence for old schools and old friends, while managing avoidance of sentimentality. Read more
Published on April 22 2004 by E. T. Ashworth
5.0 out of 5 stars A Love Letter To Books
Tobias Wolff's novel, "Old School", has a lot of levels to it. It's a gentle satire of elite New England prep schools and the unacknowledged class system they represent. Read more
Published on April 21 2004 by R. W. Rasband
5.0 out of 5 stars deeply moving and elegaic
Tobias Wolff's Old School is a heartfelt love song to a bygone age that never becomes trite or dusty. Read more
Published on April 21 2004 by Mark Stanley
2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
It seems strange to me that a writer who could pen such a searing memoir of childhood in 'This Boy's Life' could turn out such a flaccid novella as 'Old School'. Read more
Published on April 15 2004 by Newton Munnow
4.0 out of 5 stars Sidestepping Cliches
The trick in this book is in sidestepping expectations from this genre. You'll decide if the author was successful or not as you wait at one pont for the other shoe to drop... Read more
Published on April 6 2004 by Michael Moore
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully written account
Wolff has written a wonderful account of a year in the life of a private-school attendee. The narrator is looking back on a defining year in his life, a year in which he made a... Read more
Published on April 5 2004 by Glenn Miller
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