The Upper Class [Paperback]

Hobson Brown (Author), Taylor Materne (Author), Caroline Says (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 29, 2007 | Series: Upper Class

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY.

--This text refers to the Library Binding edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“This book is fabulous! The Upper Class has substance and style, and it just screams, READ ME!” (Richie Rich, Fashion Designer, Heatherette )

“The Upper Class is a surprise. My 16-year-old daughter gulped it in one day with delicious familiarity.” (Raghida Dergham, NBC Political Correspondent )

“The Upper Class is not just a book—it is a wild and original reading adventure.” (Leslie Marshall, author of A Girl Could Stand Up )

“Lyrical language breathes life into this take on a classic culture clash story.” (Publishers Weekly )

“Sharp and clever… There is little that is left unexplored in this poignant and evocative coming-of-age novel.” (Alyson Richman, author of The Last Van Gogh )

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: HarperTeen (May 29, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060850825
• ISBN-13: 978-0060850821
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,338,565 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Catty, chic, and oh-so charming - I can't wait to read the sequel!, January 17, 2008

By 

Erika Sorocco (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Upper Class (Paperback)

Many may think that being a part of the privileged, wealthy, upper class set is a piece of cake, filled with shopping sprees, non-stop parties, gorgeous guys, glamorous girls, and anything else you might happen to think up. For the select few who live this lifestyle, they'd be happy to set you straight. Sure, they have access to daddy's credit card, can vacation and party at a handful of luxury homes around the world, and drink themselves to sleep, but it's not always fun and games. Especially when you're forced to contend with being shipped off to boarding school.

Laine Hunt was bred for Wellington. Being born and raised in Greenwich, Connecticut, Laine has taken on the role of a proper Greenwich girl. Not only does she spend much of her time at the local country club, surrounded by other rich and privileged teens like herself - along with an assortment of stuffy adults who leer at her like she's some sort of lobster special - but she's also a field hockey star who is destined for stardom. Not that she wants it. Laine may be gorgeous, with pale blonde hair, never-ending legs, and turquoise eyes; but she's also plagued by one very paralyzing fear: failure. Laine has been raised to please everyone around her - from her mother to her stepfather, and even her neighbors. But with so much pressure riding on her, she can't help but feel that heading off to Wellington may just set her up for her biggest fear, and leave her disappointing everyone.

Long Island-bred Nikki Olivetti, on the other hand, couldn't stick out more as a Wellington girl. First, Nikki is new-money, so no one knows her name, or cares to learn more about her. Second, she's a loudmouth tease who likes to spend her time flirting with every boy in sight; but, underneath it all, Nikki has the biggest heart, and is interested in getting to know everyone around her. Too bad the feelings aren't reciprocated. As Laine's roommate, the pairing couldn't be more inaccurate. The only thing these two newbies have in common, is the fact that they're both reluctant to enjoy the whole boarding school experiment. They'd better figure out how to survive, however; otherwise they'll never live to see graduation day.

I am a huge fan of Cecily von Ziegesar's GOSSIP GIRL and IT GIRL series; as well as Kate Brian's PRIVATE series, so I knew that I would instantly love THE UPPER CLASS. Hobson Brown, Taylor Materne, and Caroline Says have done an enchanting job of intertwining the lives of two very different girls, along with many of their popular classmates, to create an enthralling story that is, to put it bluntly, impossible to put down. What's so interesting about THE UPPER CLASS, is that, as it's written by three individual people, you can actually see the writing change from one to another throughout the novel, which actually lends a unique twist to the tale. It's also quite fun to view the world of private school, through the eyes of two very different, yet original characters - such as Nikki and Laine. Catty, chic, and oh-so charming - I can't wait to read the sequel!

Erika Sorocco
Freelance Reviewer

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Liv's Book Reviews, August 15, 2008

By 

Liv's Book Reviews (MN, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Upper Class (Paperback)

Urgh. I think if I tried to write down all my thoughts in a single paragraph it would be both long, boring, and completely confusing. So for just this review I'm categorizing my thoughts into good and bad.

Good: TONS of description. For example, the first sentence reads as so; Outside the black window of the country club, moonlight glazes tiger lilies, dripping off the petals like cream. Doesn't that sound completely delicious? And their are many other sentences in the book that are as warm and sparkling as that one. I think I would've read the book just to be able to read nice sentences like that one. The story also has a nice and zippy plotline. Nothing ever stops for long and there's twist after twist to keep you coming back for more. There is also a character that I liked a lot who I think deserves a spot in the good category and that would be Nikki and Laine's woods instructor. I can't remember his name off the top of my head, but I liked him a lot.

Bad: And now we get to the juicy stuff. First of all, the characters were horrible. They were not developed at all and I really couldn't tell one person apart from the next, especially the boys and the parents. They just all blended together which makes a story completely suck. Also, Nikki and a guy supposedly had this relationship going on, but I really didn't see that. Sure they hook up in random scenes, but there was no dialog, no interaction, no chemistry, nothing to indicate that they actually liked each other. And characters without chemistry? Yuck. Also, the zippy plot was in the good category, but it should also be in the bad, because you could barely get your bearings before everything was mixed up again, making the whole entire book confusing and unorganized.

So I guess for the most part, Upper Class was a pretty bad book. I really liked the imagery, but other than that, it stunk. I don't think I'll be reading the next book. I have better things to do with my time.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars not just for young adults, June 11, 2007

By 

Hostess with the Mostest (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Upper Class (Paperback)

Read a review of this book in the NY Times' style section yesterday, got a copy and couldn't put it down!