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"You can't just be the smartest. You have to be the most athletic, you have to be able to have the most fun, you have to be the prettiest, the best dressed, the nicest, the most wanted. You have to constantly be out on the town partying, and then you have to get straight As. And most of all, you have to appear to be happy." -- CJ, age seventeen High school isnt what it used to be. With record numbers of students competing fiercely to get into college, schools are no longer primarily places of learning. Theyre dog-eat-dog battlegrounds in which kids must set aside interests and passions in order to strategize over how to game the system. In this increasingly stressful environment, kids arent defined by their character or hunger for knowledge, but by often arbitrary scores and statistics. In The Overachievers, journalist Alexandra Robbins delivers a poignant, funny, riveting narrative that explores how our high-stakes educational culture has spiraled out of control. During the year of her ten-year reunion, Robbins returns to her high school, where she follows students including CJ and others: -- Julie, a track and academic star who is terrified she's making the wrong choices -- "AP" Frank, who grapples with horrifying parental pressure to succeed -- Taylor, a soccer and lacrosse captain whose ambition threatens her popular girl status -- Sam, who worries his years of overachieving will be wasted if he doesnt attend a name-brand college -- Audrey, who struggles with perfectionism, and -- The Stealth Overachiever, a mystery junior who flies under the radar. Robbins tackles hard-hitting issues such as the student and teacher cheating epidemic, over-testing, sports rage, the black market for study drugs, and a college admissions process so cutthroat that some students are driven to depression and suicide because of a B. Even the earliest years of schooling have become insanely competitive, as Robbins learned when she gained unprecedented access into the inner workings of a prestigious Manhattan kindergarten admissions office. A compelling mix of fast-paced storytelling and engrossing investigative journalism, The Overachievers aims both to calm the admissions frenzy and to expose its escalating dangers.
AMAZING
| Customer Rating:  | | LOVE this book and would recommend this to everyone!! Everyone I know who has read it has found some part applicable to themselves or their friends in high school! Informative and engaging - a must read for all students!! |
great perspective into the overachievers lifestyle
| Customer Rating:  | | thia book is great the author has some great points and the book gives you the information in an entertaining way. however there is some bias and you can see the author is only showing you the negtive aspects of an overachieving world. again i think thtat the book is great to read but one must take it in without buying into every word she says. overall an informative book well worth reading |
Hurrah for Overachievers!
| Customer Rating: | This perceptive examination of the lives of real kids gives us cause for concern, but also great hope. There actually are kids who work hard, do their best and want to make the world a better place. Maybe they need more support than they get. (Don't we all?) But they're out there, doing all they can to be all that they can be. That's a good thing. Robbins does a superb job telling the stories of nine young people fighting their ways through the high school jungle, not always getting what they deserve or what they want, but coping and growing. As we follow these kids through some important formative experiences, we can't help worrying about them and questioning the system that puts so much emphasis on being "the best." Guess what. Not every body can be the best. But the good news is this: to succeed in life people don't need to be "the best." They need to be motivated and competent. If these stretched and stressed kids can adjust their focus just a bit, to realize that happiness is more connected to being "their best" than to being "the best," they will do just fine. Thanks, Ms. Robbins, and thanks to these kids and their families, for this meaningful look at the lives of some terrific young people. For a fine fictional treatment of some of these issues, readers might also enjoy Crunch Timeby Mariah Fredericks.
Janet Gingold
author of Finch Goes Wild |
Great book for discussion !
| Customer Rating: | | I bought this as a gift for a high school relative of mine that really wants to get into an Ivy school. This student runs herself ragged taking honors classes, getting tutoring, and participating in sports to the point of utter exhaustion. I feel this book will help her and her parents reflect on their college obsessions and realize that not getting into an Ivy will not ruin your life! I thought this book was very insightful to how crazy some students and parents have become in pursuit of success. I think this book speaks to many people including those that do not have children in high school. The sections in the book that cover the "admissions" testing into top rated preschools in NY is fascinating. I remember neighbors of mine who demanded that our public school put their son into gifted and would eagerly talk about their desire for a full scholarship at a local private college for him one day (he was only 6!) Basically this book will strike a cord with any student or parent. I also liked how the author gave a list of ideas/ suggestions on how to solve these problems. Although the solutions/ideas presented may not be realistic it makes excellent discussion material. |
A Must-Read
| Customer Rating: | This great book comes with a great message: "...our high-stakes educational culture has spiraled out of control. Following along with nine real people in the battleground of SATs and Ivy League colleges, this book explores the issues of our educational system and their consequences from the point of views of both the students and the author.
The flaws of our educational culture has defined an age where people will go to extremes. For example, one mom strangled another's daughter because the other daughter beat her own daughter for a spot in a prestigious preschool, which won't even go on your college resume. AP Frank, one of the characters in this book, is outraged for all his asian mom did to him, like breaking his thumb or abusing him when he got one single B.
In an era where colleges barely care about your SAT grades, students are taking more and more extracurriculars and anything to add to their college resumes. The sacrificed time and grades build up to take the forms of sleep deprivation and even thoughts of suicide. Educational policies are like a hole which "your chances of getting out get lower as you fall deeper." For anyone who is interested in how our students are reacting to everything thrown at them, this book is a must-read. |
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