Los Angeles Guide to Private Schools [Paperback]

Victoria Goldman (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 580 pages
• Publisher: Soho Press (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1569471134
• ISBN-13: 978-1569471135
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 1.6 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #789,352 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good effort, but lacking in some areas, September 6, 2003

By 

2nearsighted (Dublin, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Los Angeles Guide to Private Schools (Paperback)

To be fair, accurately covering every private school in Los Angeles is a tall order, since they change drastically year by year, and sometimes month to month, depending on the students, shifting faculty, and erratic funds. But, that said, Ms. Goldman's guide was disappointing in its clear bias toward the well-known, prestigious L.A. school like Harvard/Westlake, Curtis, Marlboro, Loyola, etc. I must say that the smaller, alternative schools don't get much of a fair shake in this edition. I'm a grandparent, raising a teenage granddaughter with many problems (which we needn't go into here), and, smart and lovely and talented as she is, she just isn't going to get into Harvard-Westlake at the moment. Nor do I make enough money to send her to Campbell Hall. This is a good book if you happen to be a Spielberg, and your kid is a straight A student; but it's limited on information for those of us looking for feasible alternatives. Plus, I need to know REAL issues: what's the social situation at some of these places? What kind of substances are floating around? How much smoke is in the bathroom? I may be asking a lot, but the truth of the matter is, academics, faculty-to-student ratio, and course offerings are just a small part of school. We need somebody to give us the real scoop.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Helpful but very outdated, July 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Los Angeles Guide to Private Schools (Paperback)

When this book was released in 1998, it was a very helpful resource that made the navagation of the L.A. private school morass less complex and far less stressful. My problem with the book today lies simply in the fact that it has not been updated in five years and much of the information about the schools in the book is quite outdated. Whether it be enrollment figures, tuition costs, or even the very culture of many of the schools themselves, much has changed in Los Angeles private schools since this book was published just as much has changed in Los Angeles. A new edition reflecting these many changes is long overdue and hopefully forthcoming.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Limited View of LA schools, December 4, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Los Angeles Guide to Private Schools (Paperback)

This book lists many of the well known private schools in the LA area, however it omits many others. Even when describing the schools selected, more information is given about the better known schools. The information in this book is also very out of date. I suggest getting this book from a library.