An Uncommon Education - Paperback

by Elizabeth Percer (Author)

For fans of Prep, Dead Poets Society, and Special Topics in Calamity Physics comes an elegant and remarkably insightful debut novel.

"A moving and bittersweet coming-of-age story about love, loss, friendship, ambition, and the power of memory." -J. Courtney Sullivan, author of Commencement, Maine, and Saints for All Occasions

Shy, introspective Naomi Feinstein has dreamed of a prestigious future in cardiology ever since her father's heart attack scare. For her, becoming a doctor seems to be the only way she can create order in her messy life and perhaps one day save her mother, a deeply depressed woman who rarely has the strength to leave her own bedroom. Alienated at school, Naomi spends afternoons studying with her father, poring over textbooks, and dreaming of Wellesley College. But when her next-door neighbor Teddy, her confidant and only friend, abruptly departs from her life, it's the first devastating loss from which Naomi is not sure she can ever recover, even after her long-awaited acceptance letter to Wellesley arrives.

But college is not all Naomi imagined it would be. Among hundreds of other girls, she is consumed by loneliness and competition where she had expected solidarity and security--until the day she sees a girl fall into a frozen lake.

This is Naomi's introduction to Wellesley's mysterious Shakespeare Society, the college's oldest club, filled with secret rituals and the college's most unconventional and passionate students. Within "Shakes," Naomi is finally able to open herself up to her peers, reflecting a little less and living a little more. Detaching from the past, replacing Einstein with Shakespeare, Naomi's new world is exciting and liberating, until an accusation brings a scandal with irreversible consequences for Naomi and her new friends. Naomi has always tried to save the ones she loves, but part of growing up is learning that, sometimes, saving others is a matter of saving yourself.

Poignant and wise, An Uncommon Education is a heartbreaking and compelling portrait of a young woman's quest for greatness, filled with the complicated ties of family and friendship, and the ultimate importance of learning to let go.

Front Jacket

Afraid of losing her parents at a young age, Naomi Feinstein prepares single-mindedly for a prestigious future as a doctor. But when her only friend and confidant abruptly departs from her life, Naomi isn't sure she will ever recover, even after a long-awaited acceptance letter to Wellesley arrives.

Yet Naomi soon learns that college isn't the bastion of solidarity and security she had imagined. Amid hundreds of other young women, she is consumed by loneliness--until the day she sees a girl fall into the freezing waters of a lake.

The event marks Naomi's introduction to Wellesley's oldest honor society, the mysterious Shakespeare Society, defined by secret rituals and filled with unconventional, passionate students. As Naomi immerses herself in this exciting and liberating world, her happiness is soon compromised by a scandal that brings devastating consequences. Naomi has always tried to save the ones she loves, but sometimes saving others is a matter of saving yourself.

An Uncommon Education is a compelling portrait of a quest for greatness and the grace of human limitations. Poignant and wise, it artfully captures the complicated ties of family, the bittersweet inevitability of loss, and the importance of learning to let go.

--New York Times Book Review

Back Jacket

Afraid of losing her parents at a young age, Naomi Feinstein prepares single-mindedly for a prestigious future as a doctor. But when her only friend and confidant abruptly departs from her life, Naomi isn't sure she will ever recover, even after a long-awaited acceptance letter to Wellesley arrives.

Yet Naomi soon learns that college isn't the bastion of solidarity and security she had imagined. Amid hundreds of other young women, she is consumed by loneliness--until the day she sees a girl fall into the freezing waters of a lake.

The event marks Naomi's introduction to Wellesley's oldest honor society, the mysterious Shakespeare Society, defined by secret rituals and filled with unconventional, passionate students. As Naomi immerses herself in this exciting and liberating world, her happiness is soon compromised by a scandal that brings devastating consequences. Naomi has always tried to save the ones she loves, but sometimes saving others is a matter of saving yourself.

An Uncommon Education is a compelling portrait of a quest for greatness and the grace of human limitations. Poignant and wise, it artfully captures the complicated ties of family, the bittersweet inevitability of loss, and the importance of learning to let go.