Freshman [Hardcover]

Michael Gerber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2, 2006

Hart Fox may not have the pedigree to be a shoo-in at Stutts, a prestigious Ivy League school, but he has the grades and the résumé.  And he does make it in—sort of.  His acceptance is hijacked by Burlington Darling III, a wealthy alum who is so desperate to get his hapless son, Trip, into Stutts that he funds a new boathouse.  Darling offers to get Hart a spot in the freshman class, and pay his way, if Hart will take all of Trip’s classes for him.

Despite this deal with the devil, Hart arrives on the Stutts campus jubilant.  But what awaits him is a strange parallel universe of secret societies, inexplicable traditions, and class hierarchies.  Soon, Hart finds himself aligned with the outcasts at an all-but-defunct school humor magazine, where a journalistic stunt catapults him into a mad, escalating guerilla war with the Darlings. With threats of death—and worse—expulsion looming over him, Hart must rely on his wit, and the aid of some very exceptional friends, to save him.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 10 Up-Hart Fox is in line for admission to the prestigious Ivy League college, Stutts. What he doesn't count on is the power of money. When the local millionaire's dunce of a son elbows him out of the running, Hart has no choice but to accept a deal. He gets a full ride to Stutts in exchange for taking the dunce's classes on top of his own. Of course, the deal backfires, but with the help of his vampire girlfriend, his wheelchair-bound genius roommate, and the staff of the college humor magazine, Hart just may come out on top. At times it is clear that Gerber intends this work as satire-Stutts is a hybrid of all that is bizarre about the Ivy League, from Animal House to secret societies. At times the narrative borders on the absurd-what is the point of the vampire, anyway? And at times he gives readers a touchingly humorous look at college life. On the whole, this title may appeal to college-bound students, particularly boys who are otherwise too busy to read for fun.-Morgan Johnson-Doyle, Sierra High School, Colorado Springs, CO
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 10-12. Hart Fox's grades and SAT scores prove that he is a worthy pick for prestigious Stutts University, but Michigan gubernatorial candidate (and Stutts alum) Burlington Darling III buys his son Trip's admission, pushing Hart out of his spot. To keep his inept son from ruining his campaign, Darling offers to pay Hart's tuition--provided he takes Trip's classes and keeps him out of trouble. Gerber, the author of the Barry Trotter parodies, delivers plenty of sophomoric humor (Hart is majoring in the Study of Things), while still managing to illuminate the truths of the freshman college experience, complete with footnotes. Hart's struggle to find his place in Stutts' elite world is aided by a vampire girlfriend, a wheelchair-bound friend with enough gadgets to make James Bond envious, and a job at a magazine. Even when the plot plummets into the absurd (the Comma Comma Apostrophe fraternity's murder plot against Hart), older teens will enjoy the perverse peek at post-high-school life. Cindy Dobrez
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion (April 2, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786838507
• ISBN-13: 978-0786838509
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 6.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,497,761 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Michael Gerber (b. 1969) has sold 1.2 million books in 20 different countries, most notably Barry Trotter and the Shameless Parody, which reached #2 on The London Times bestseller list and launched a renaissance in that type of comic prose. Prior to working in the novel form, Gerber sold humorous writing to every major American magazine and newspaper that publishes such drivel, including The New Yorker, The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and many others. He has also contributed to NPR and TV's "Saturday Night Live." In his spare time, he leads the 501(c)3 overseeing The Yale Record, America's oldest college humor magazine, and mentors many student writers all around the world.

An ardent fan of The Beatles, Gerber runs a team blog on the group located at http://www.heydullblog.blogspot.com. He lives in Santa Monica, CA, with his wife and two cats.
 

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Biting satire for smart ass punks, by smart ass punks, April 16, 2006

By 

Jane (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Freshman (Hardcover)

I can't believe this book is really considered "young adult." Maybe in some parallel universe where The Onion is the official newspaper of your local high school, but the last time I checked, mocking the ridiculous is an all-ages activity.

This is a funny, funny book, but it's also dark, even cruel in its honesty about America and our fixations with status and money. Early on, our hero meets one of his enemies, a man whose idea of affirmative action is to name his new country club after the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Motto: "We have a dream ... the finest golf course in America!")

From the aforementioned real estate developer Burlington Darling and his idiot son Trip to the frat boys of Comma Comma Apostrophe, to the stuffy academics of Stutts, nobody escapes unmocked, and as other reviewers have pointed out, the results are hilarious. I have no idea how Gerber can be so funny for an entire book, but I'm psyched as hell. And I can't wait for the sequel...

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hilarious, insightful, and true, April 16, 2006

By 

Samuel Hennessy (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Freshman (Hardcover)

This is the perfect book for anyone in high school who wants to go to a fancy college, anyone IN a fancy college, and anyone who's ever been to a fancy college. Or anyone who wonders what they're like.

It's a hilariously accurate take on life at Stutts University, an amalgam of Yale, Harvard, Stanford and all of America's many other snooty schools. The characters are desperate to get in, and then desperate to prove to themselves they belong there, casually wreaking various forms of emotional and societal destruction -- on themselves and others -- as they go. Hart, the main character, watches the crazed scramble for success while also wondering whether to dive in himself. Meanwhile, the surrounding adults are just as berserk if not more so.

It's perfect for your smart 16 year-old cousin, and also filled with sophisticated comedy and references that will appeal to adults. Anyone who's ever had to take the SATs will get it.

I've read Gerber's popular Harry Potter parodies, and this is even funnier and deeper. And best of all, it says it's first of four books, one for each college year. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh And Full Of Funny, March 25, 2006

By 

J Bryanoff (NYC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Freshman (Hardcover)

The fearless comic mind behind Barry Trotter is back and as hilarious as ever. Buying this book is certainly cheaper than attending an Ivy League school--and definitely funnier.