Customer Reviews

Casualties of Privilege: Essays on Prep Schools' Hidden Culture

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Casualties of Privilege offers an inside look into some of the dark realities of our nations elite boarding schools. The essays, written by those who have witnessed or participated in the rituals they describe, offer a candid look at a side of the world that few of us ever get to see.

I read this book when I was considering the possibility of attending boarding school. At the time, I thought the essays in the book made boarding school look very intriguing. Had my parents seen the book, there is no way they would have even let me apply.

Overall a very good book, if an honest portrayal of boarding schools is what you're looking for. For those who may think the subject matter is controversial, open up your eyes and realize that these schools are no different than the rest of society.

This book is a must-read for parents outside the boarding-school tradition who are considering boarding school for their children. The "hidden culture" which Crosier poignantly discusses refers primarily to life after the school day ends and before the next one begins. I read this book before my child began boarding school; and although it did not change our plans, it definitely prepared me for some of the problems that arose during my son's first year. Crosier discusses at some length the demands placed upon boarding school faculty, demands which result in an emphasis on the classroom and athletic fields and which shortchange the mentoring that students need when the school day ends. He recommends a separate evening faculty who are not too exhausted to serve as surrogate parents. While the cost of two sets of faculty would probably result in boarding school only for the most wealthy (and would necessarily exclude families like ours), students would have more of a home-away-from-home rather than being forced too often into situations they are not yet prepared to handle alone.

The basic premise underlying this book of essays written by former prep school students is that there is such a thing as a standard prep school experience. In fact, the term "prep school" has been adopted by so many different types of secondary schools as to have become meaningless.

Those common threads that do exist (loneliness, use of alcohol and drugs, sex, etc.) are really part of being an adolescent, and are not unique to prep school students, although the young authors of these essays would have us believe otherwise.

There is nothing in these essays that wasn't said better by J. D. Salinger in "The Catcher in the Rye." Read it instead.

CASUALTIES OF PRIVILEGE is a collection of essays by boarding school graduates about their experiences living at school. Most emphasize the dark side of adolescence but also show in many instances how teenage resilience can lead to opportunities for growth. The teachers/dorm parents are portrayed as often overworked and consequently unable to perform many of the parenting functions children need when living away from home. School administators and trustees may view this book as threatening but I recommend it to any parents or students wishing to learn more about the possible perils of boarding school life. The events described in this book are written by young adults who attended school before 1991.

Whilst this book shows some of the ugly side of boarding schools, it is a 'must read' for anyone working in a boarding school - you will be surprised with what goes on behind your backs!

Adolescents are pretty much rebellious. No getting around that. It's natural. It's necessary. It's just part of the process of growing up. However, there are differences between children going through this while living at home and going to a public school verses living at a boarding school. It isn't a major difference, but it does exist and has its own flavor. This book gives you a taste of it from those that experienced it or were experiencing at the time of that the book was published. I found the recommendations given by this book to be sound and reasonable. While I do not view this as a great book, I would recommend it for those thinking of going to a boarding school or sending their child to one. However, I would also recommend you not base your decision on just this book but read several about boarding schools before doing so.

Although my boarding school was not located in New England, the region infamous for boarding schools, my experience in a school in the suburbs of Washington DC mirrors this book to a scary degree. Sometimes in reading the essays I see specific friends narrating or acting out the stories that we lived, set down here by someone else. Although the book was published in 91 the stories still ring true to a graduate nearly 15 years later. Although I would not call this book entirely balanced, this is ok because the author himself admits that it is a look at the "hidden culture" not the culture as a whole. I agree with an overwhelming majority of these essays about this hidden culture. Their observations are piercing and precise, sparking insight that I only now fully appreciate several years later. The writers do not hesitate to get their hands dirty with sex, drugs and rule-breaking and their candid approach accurately reflects the mindset of those who have lived in this "hidden culture". At the same time the essays are infused with a hint of the positive, undertones of the unbelievable camaraderie which I witnessed in my time in boarding school run through the entire book. I know that my time at boarding school will always remain conflicted and paradoxical in many ways in my mind. Nonetheless I feel that this book does exceptionally well in capturing one of the large aspects of the experience. That being said, this book should not be taken as a comprehensive account by anyone considering sending their children to boarding school. There are also many positive accounts which should also carefully considered and weighed against the negative. This book is a large part of one half the argument.