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E. Scott Lloyd

The Undergraduate Paperback – December 19, 2018

by E. Scott Lloyd (Author)

22 ratings

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The rule for students at Montpelier is simple: party hard; nurse your hangover, and graduate into your place in America’s best and brightest. But Will Ferguson is not one for rules. When he drinks, he goes all out – generally until he blacks out, leading to many escapades he can brag about later. No big deal…except one night’s drunken bender ends with a very unwanted pregnancy for Kristen, Will’s occasional friend-with-benefits.A typical college life of wild campus parties, morning after remorse, a semester abroad in Italy, and high expectations comes to a crashing halt as Will must come to grips with Kristen’s reluctant and pained decision to have an abortion -- and for his part in bringing her to such desperation. Crushed and lost, he turns, haltingly, to the Catholic faith that he has ignored since childhood. The Undergraduate is Less Than Zero for the Millennial generation – a painfully relatable tale of how privileged youth can be torn asunder by the sudden intrusion of adult responsibility and burning questions of moral culpability. Will’s journey stands in for the struggle so many who are raised with impossibly high standards for success, a sad tolerance for delayed adulthood, and a shallow sense of morality. Will’s search for redemption is not just personal; it’s the hero quest of an entire generation.

Print length

383 pages
Language

English
Publication date

December 19, 2018
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.96 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

1947942328
ISBN-13

978-1947942325
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Liberty Island (December 19, 2018)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 383 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1947942328
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1947942325
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.07 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.96 x 8.5 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,779,282 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #126,945 in Literary Fiction (Books)

Customer Reviews:
22 ratings

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5 star		51%
4 star		13%
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2 star		19%
1 star		18%

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Tom McClusky

Must read for those on either side of the abortion issue

Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2019

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A raw look at how abortion affects the survivors - without being overly preachy about the issue.

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

dave h

Doesn't deliver on it's promise

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2020

Verified Purchase

I wish I would have paid more attention and noticed that most of the reviews – good and bad - are brief and are probably from people who haven’t actually read the book. Here’s my objective review. I wanted to like this book. A narrative that covers the emotional impact of an abortion could be laudable, but unfortunately this book doesn’t deliver it. It’s not the worst story about college life I’ve ever read, but it’s got lots of shortcomings and there’s no way it’s significant to ANY generation as the back cover claims.

I’m not going to give any big spoilers here. Most of the rather thin plot is essentially described on the back cover of the book. It’s a first-person tale about a guy named Will who binge drinks (underage) and chain smokes his way through his first three years at a private east coast college, apparently never having to study, never worrying about money (despite a modest background), beds multiple women, and does a semester abroad studying art in Italy. He wantonly gets away with things that would get most people pummeled or arrested. If you’re expecting a nuanced, reflective and adult tale involving sex, booze, drugs, relationships and stress in college, you’ll be disappointed. The main character narrates his exploits between a PG-13 and R level (sex and language, respectively) as if the author intends the book to be turned into a TV screenplay for cable. But I don't recommend for teens because it's not a realistic portrayal of the full spectrum of college life.

Mixed into the PG-13/R debauchery is Will’s periodic bouts of heavy Catholic guilt and regrets about a FWB who had an abortion after he got her pregnant (an event mentioned on the back cover, so I didn’t spoil it). Unfortunately, we only get Will’s first-person perspective on the before-during-after of the abortion, and it’s not even the bulk of the story. The self-narration style prevents us from understanding what’s going on in anyone else’s head. If you only care about Will’s perspective and self-loathing about the abortion, you might not mind. But I found his thoughts and emotions to be mostly superficial and he fails to garner empathy. I know I SHOULD have felt sorry for him at times, but I didn’t. He’s not a bad guy, but he’s not very likable, either – except maybe a little at the rushed ending, but by then it’s too little, too late (more about that later).

In addition to a main character whom I never cared about, the story suffers from a clunky timeline. It’s as if an editor decided to yank three chapters from the middle and stick them at the beginning. There are many other jumps back in time that are very abrupt and feel too deliberate. The transitions to different timelines are lousy, with no breadcrumbs to let you know where you are. A few times you’re forced to stumble through a couple of chapters that don’t make sense but then jump back in time to fill in the missing pieces. Some missing gaps are never filled in, so we’re supposed to assume NOTHING happened to Will in those days, weeks or months skipped over? Other than an occasional mention of what semester he’s starting or a holiday sprinkled in, there’s no clear sense of time passage.

The cluttered timeline only amplifies the annoying overuse of inane references to people, places and events that are easily forgotten - yet one or two MIGHT be important later in a flashback, or in the future. Or not. There are simply WAY too many inconsequential characters introduced making it hard to remember or care who’s who. I get it that you encounter a lot of people at college, but this felt like being at a party and being introduced to dozens of people you’ll never see again, and nobody is memorable. Later, one or two characters will pop back into the conversation, and you’re somehow supposed to remember and care - even though Will hasn’t gotten around to sharing their back story yet (or he sometimes never does). His relationships with friends are shallow and most of the other characters are not well-developed, with the one exception of Father Bob. But Fr. Bob is just one minor, underutilized player in this crowded cast of ungrateful privilege.

For some parts of the story, Will describes things in excruciating detail, causing those parts to drag pedantically and leaving you scratching your head as to whether any of it matters. The first time or two, you assume it must be important to agonize over the details. You only realize towards the end that most of the details didn’t really matter. I guess because I’m male, I was entertained by his habitual detailed descriptions of the female characters where he itemizes their wardrobe, grooming and physique from head to toe. However, most of his ramblings are full of superficial observations, overuse of visual metaphors, and trivial thoughts. Honestly, the majority of his ramblings about his surroundings aren’t very entertaining, and portions felt like filler added after the first draft to boost the page count. The vocabulary is misogynistic and adolescent, but at least that makes it a quick read.

Without giving too much away, the last two chapters (only seven pages) offer a weak, clumsy and rushed “redemption quest” wrap-up. But is he actually redeemed? And it's no surprise he ends up with a girl, but I won’t say which one (there were a few to root for - or against). It’s like the author simply ran out of words or was trying to make a deadline. I felt gypped at the end - I think I even said out loud, “That’s it?!” Lastly, the brief epilogue, “The Beginning”, doesn’t help the anemic ending. No, please! There does not need to be a sequel to this, even though we need more of Fr. Bob’s wisdom.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

K. Evans

Finally a novel with a Catholic perspective on life

Reviewed in the United States on August 13, 2019

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I enjoyed this novel a great deal, though I have some minor criticisms of writing technique. I think his female characters could have been better developed and that they could have been given more closure in the end. But for a first novel, I think Lloyd did an excellent job. It was extremely refreshing to read a novel with a Catholic protagonist, whose faith very much influences his life and how he conducts himself, even if he fails at it more often than not. I also felt that it was a very honest look at college culture and the detrimental effects that it has on lives. The character of the campus priest rang very true to me, more than any of the other characters. The book was very engaging and I read through it pretty quickly.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

A novel to be read. This is a novel many can relate to

Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2019

Verified Purchase

The writing is captivating . Could not put the book down. Perhaps a sequel ?

3 people found this helpful

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Richard Paolinelli

A Great Read With An Important Message

Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2019

If you are wondering just how good this book is, look no further than the amount of drive-by 1-star reviews it has. Clearly, the author has struck a nerve with this incredible story and he - and his work - must be destroyed. It is sad that Orwell's 1984 seems to have been read as an instruction manual by so many. Buy this book, you won't regret it.

17 people found this helpful

Helpful

S Phelan

Hilarious, Heartbreaking, Surprising

Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2019

Reading this book is like watching your favorite character on your favorite TV show, and you thought he was the good guy, but you throw the remote at the TV when he does things a good guy wouldn't do. Unpredictable, jarring--a look into a smart guy doing stupid things, from an author's very smart perspective. Good thing is you can throw this book and it won't break. Unless you're reading it on Kindle. Then throw it at something soft. You'll pick it up again very soon and keep reading. It's one of those books.

14 people found this helpful

Helpful

Sandra Gruenler

Highly Recommended

Reviewed in the United States on June 10, 2019

My friend randomly sends me books to read. Not like recommendations - actual, physical books. I always try to read them out of respect but give up after a few chapters. This is the first book he’s sent me that I actually finished. I’m not a big novel reader to begin with so I have to really like something to finish it. This book had me looking forward to my commute so I could continue reading.

The story is a compelling one and might have you doing some soul searching as to what you’d do in the same situation. The writing is vivid and really keeps you invested.

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Richard G.

Brings a different perspective on a few topics

Reviewed in the United States on May 30, 2019

Great read. Brings me right back to going to college in the early 2000’s. It’s a thought-provoking account of some of the most difficult situations that might arise during adolescence.

12 people found this helpful

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