September means fall, football and back –to-school. The perfect time of year to read books set in boarding schools!! (And, I’m not just talking about Harry Potter and A Separate Peace.) There is something about the idea of teenagers living together that makes a great jumping off point for a good book. Teen angst 24 hours a day? Sign me up!
Here are some of my favorite books set in boarding schools that range from the rich, preppy, secret-society-ridden to science fiction, dystopian institutions.
Prep – Curtis Sittenfeld
This novel is the ultimate outsider’s takedown of the world of the preppy New England boarding school. Lee Fiora is a scholarship student at the fictional Ault School. In a place where everyone has money and no one talks about it, class differences are played out in a myriad of subtle ways all day long. Lee is a keen observer. This novel is full of funny and astute moments that make it a delicious read.
The Secret Place – Tana French
The administration of a girl’s boarding school thought it would be a good idea to create a public, anonymous gossip board (a low-tech version of having iPhones, nowadays). What could possibly go wrong? When a picture appears on the board a year after a boy’s body was found on campus with the caption, “I know who killed him”, the book is off and running. The fifth of French’s Dublin Murder Squad mysteries, this is my favorite so far, in part because of the setting and the pure fun of watching the detectives deal with secretive teen girls. If you haven’t read the earlier books in the series, no worries. This novel can easily stand on it’s own.
The Lake of Dead Languages – Carol Goodman
In this debut novel, Goodman takes us to Heart Lake School for Girls where we meet the Latin teacher, Jane Hudson. Ms. Hudson is a former Heart Lake Girl herself and left the school after a tragic event involving her closest friends. Her journals from that time are found by current day students and a group of girls produce a staged re-enactment based on the information found in them, which leads to the death of a troubled current student. The well-drawn suspense focuses on the thin line between innocence and guilt. Many scenes take place at the lake at night and involve rocks, caves, and pagan rituals. Who could ask for more?
The Headmaster’s Wife – Thomas Christopher Greene
This cleverly woven novel demonstrates the effects of boarding schools on the adults that inhabit them. Arthur Winthrop, headmaster of the elite Lancaster School, is found naked and wondering in Central Park. As the novel unfolds, we learn about the secret and tight knit world of Lancaster and the secrets of the headmaster himself. Midway through the novel, everything we thought we knew is upended as new truths are unveiled. This is a taut literary roller-coaster of a book where the setting of the Lancaster School gives the novel a gothic feel.
Belzhar – Meg Wolitzer
Jam Gallahue is sent to The Wooden Barn, a therapeutic boarding school which is home to emotionally fragile teens. Jam becomes close with her classmates in a special seminar called Special Topics in English. Those chosen for this class read Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar and keep a (magical) journal. The students learn about themselves and each other and the stories are not as straightforward as the reader expects. When my daughter finished this novel, she immediately ran out to buy The Bell Jar. What is more magical than a book that keeps readers reading?
Every Heart A Doorway – Seanan McGuire
The boarding school at the heart of this novel is pitched to parents as a sort of treatment facility for children with mental health issues. In reality, it is a carefully cultivated boarding school for young people who have previously visited other worlds (via doorways, natch) in order to re-acclimate them to this world. The premise alone is enough to make this one a winner.
Never Let me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro
This creepy, dystopian novel starts out happily enough, with three students in a fictional English boarding school, Halisham. At Halisham, the students are well educated and tended. But, soon enough, the students realize that something is a little off in the world of Halisham. The students are continually told that they are special and important to society. For the three students who are the principle characters of this book, the true import of their existence manifests in strange and disturbing ways.
Well-Read Neck 