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May 19, 2010

Sharon rated it:

Alexandra Robbins' The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids is a poignant, non-fiction work that touches upon the modern competitive education system, which has seemingly gone out of control. Rather than earning grades for learning, students are obtaining artificial grades through cheating, and even resorting to non-prescribed medications to facilitate their study habits in order to get into their dream college. During Alexandra's 10-year high school reunion, she gathers a group of her More...

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Nov 05, 2008

Crystal rated it:

In The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by the celebrated author Alexandra Robbins, a significant issue of our current society is addressed: the dilemma of how academic and societal pressures are negatively affecting students today. This non-fictional novel retraces the high school lives of real students whose only names have been changed. The frenzied lives of six high school students, which may seem even unbelievable at times, are portrayed. Unfortunately, the different, yet simi More...

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Sep 24, 2008

Judy rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, a nonfiction work by Alexandra Robbins, is a book I chose to read because it was a requirement for our English Honors class. Students usually groan at the thought of reading a book because it is a school requirement, but I found The Overachievers to be quite an interesting read. In it, Robbins traces the thoughts and lives of several overachieving students, namely juniors and seniors, from Whitman High School located in Bethesda, Maryland, who More...

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Apr 03, 2009

Andres rated it:

Most books assigned in literature classes contain ideas and symbols created from historical culture. Rarely are there novels assigned that reflect the current setting of America’s high schools. That’s why I was a little curious when my English teacher assigned us to read Alexandra Robbins’ The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids. As a novel that reflects the very setting I see before my eyes everyday, this novel focuses on the dilemma facing most normal high school students; the fear More...

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Apr 02, 2009

Nathan rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, by Alexandra Robbins, tells the story of nine “overachieving” students who endure the pressures of the highly touted Walt Whitman high school in an attempt to be accepted by their favorite Ivy League colleges. Each of the nine students endures an array of pressures and hardships that their parent’s had never experienced while trying to attain their goals for higher education. This novel helps expose how the burden of success weighs on everyone More...

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Apr 02, 2009

Mary rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Life of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robins, sheds light on the negative side of geniuses in school. Robins followed eight real-life high school students as research for her non-fiction novel. Using the information she found she wrote a non-fiction novel about those students. Throughout the novel, we meet a variety of overachievers varying from “AP” Frank, a now college student who struggles between his mother and father’s diverse culture, and Pete, a student more th More...

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Apr 02, 2009

Scott rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids was a compelling novel that really broadened my view of the things that high school students go through. This work of nonfiction was amazingly mind expanding. Alexandra Robbins, with the help of her journalism skills, brought fourth an unseen world of insane students who will do anything to gain admittance to the schools of their choice. The highly addictive book is impossible to put down. The plot consists of nine students stories. AP Frank More...

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Apr 02, 2009

Branko rated it:

Branko Galonja
Ms. Campanella
English 3H- Period 2
3 April 2009
The Overachievers
The awe-inspiring and beautifully written novel The Overachievers: The Secret Life of Driven Kids, written by Alexandra Robbins, is one that many high school teenagers can relate their life to. The reason I chose this book was because I was assigned to read it. Usually when I am assigned to read a book I hate it from the start, but to my amazement I could actuall More...

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Mar 28, 2009

Hilal rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins is a novel based on the lives of nine students attending Walt Whitman High School in Maryland. Robbins tells their stories of getting accepted into their dream colleges. Normally, when I have to read a novel for school, I am not very intrigued; however, I could easily relate to this one. Feeling the pressure of college and the outside world, these students all obtain the same struggle of being accepted into their dream co More...

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Jan 08, 2009

Hoang rated it:

To critique anything is not hard; anyone can talk about anything that others have put blood and sweat into. It is not a hard job, and only during rare cases when a critic is really compelled to write a marvelous review.
The Overachievers, by Alexandra Robbins, looked like a promising book. I picked it merely to get over with the reading requirement, but there was so much hype and good opinion about this book, I was curious as to why. Although the book, to me, seemed like there was someth More...

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Jan 07, 2009

Kevin rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, by Alexandra Robbins, reveals the truth of the problematic society we live in today: the pressure given onto the students to be essentially perfect in every way. This non-fiction, based on the true stories of actual high school students, urges the reader to take action to fix the problem at hand. As several characters live through their hectic lives, the unfortunate truth and the toll of being an overachiever comes through.
I originally c More...

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Jan 07, 2009

Katie rated it:

"School takes over. But everything not related to school right now seems so small and unimportant. School does not let kids live. School has its bright moments, it's entertainment, and it's long-lasting value, but the overbearing competitiveness and work combine to create one of the most stressful environments I can imagine" (24). The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins reports the driven lives of 8 students at Walt Whitman High School and a former stude More...

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Jan 08, 2009

Jasmin rated it:

Jasmin Maleksalehi
Ms. Campanella
E3H- 1st
8 January 2009

The Ridiculous Lives of Driven Kids

After hearing many reviews about The Overachievers: The Secret lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins in my English class, I decided to read it and see how it was for myself. The Overachievers is a non-fiction book that follows and studies a group of kids who will do anything, including sacrifice their ow More...

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Jan 07, 2009

Byron rated it:

As years pass by, there are more and more people. However, the numbers of spaces for top colleges or even kindergartens have remained the same. This obviously creates a dilemma that is described by Alexandra Robbins in her book, The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids. Robbins follows a number of students at Whitman High School that are overachievers commenting on their lives, taking excerpts from their conversations, and providing her own statistical data. The students’ schedules are More...

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Jan 07, 2009

Daniel rated it:

I was assigned to read The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids for my English class. Most books that I am required to read for school end up very dry and tedious, but I was very satisfied with this one.

The author of this nonfiction book, Alexandra Robbins, tells the story of nine students attending or that had attended Walt Whitman High School in Maryland. These students include “AP” Frank, Audrey, C.J., Julie, Sam, Pete, Taylor, Ryland, and the “Stealth.” The “stealth More...

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Jan 07, 2009

Dushyant rated it:

In her novel, The Overachievers: The Secret Life of Driven Kids, Alexandra Robbins’ recounts the story of seven students at the prestigious Whitman High School, and tells the tale of their struggle through high school in a series of journal entries taken from interviews with each of them. The students stories all share the common stress-filled and competitive environment that surround them in high school, the kind of environment that Robbins feels too many high school students have been going th More...

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Feb 01, 2012

Bridgette rated it:

Everyone wants to hear their child is an overachiever, right?

It's a parent’s dream: a child who gets straight A’s, is active in sports and extracurricular activities, scores high on the SAT, and takes all honors and AP course. Right?

For the child, it might be a nightmare. And it might be far less good for the child’s future than it might otherwise appear.

The overachiever culture is what journalist Alexandra Robbins set out to explore when she returned to her high More...

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Nov 14, 2011

Tracy rated it:

I actually really liked this book for a number of reasons. #1 - I graduated from Walt Whitman High School in 1981 (the subjects of this book are from WWHS), #2 - I worked in a HS setting for 6 years, #3 - I have two kids about the age of the kids in this book.

I thought Robbins did a good job explaining the pressure to achieve that is placed on kids at a school like Whitman. Whitman is in an affluent suburb of Washington, DC and at one time was ranked as one of the best High Schools More...

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Oct 02, 2011

Ronald rated it:

The book is divided into several sections, each filled with journal entries / portfolios of various students from a Montgomery County School in MD. One from a competitive school background could easily relate to the profiles of each student; I myself a result of the similarly (if not more) competitive system in nearby Fairfax County, saw my high school self in several of the students. It's all very interesting, but what are social effects of having published this book? My argument: nothing.
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Jul 03, 2011

Christie rated it:

This book was a fascinating look into overachieving high school students' lives. Things have definitely changed sine I graduated from high school 10 (ouch) years ago. Tim couldn't even recognize this as being high school life, it was so far removed from what he experienced. I'm glad I was determined to go to BYU so I didn't have all the pressure to pick the perfect college. It'll be interesting to see how things are by the time my future kids are in high school.

The chapters are div More...

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Aug 30, 2010

Escherer rated it:

The Overachievers or The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids is a nonfiction book written by Alexandra Robbins. Using the example of some American teenagers, it centers upon overachievement in high school, emphasizing its negative effect in modern American society. It specifically examines the belief that being successful depends on attaining the perfect GPA and being accepted by the "right" college.

Throughout the work, the author follows many diverse students wh More...

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Jun 17, 2010

Heather rated it:

Unfortunately, I see too much of myself in the characters that Robbins follows - the overwhelming perfectionism, the need to win every accolade and award possible, the fear of failure (which is classified as getting a 'B'), and the enormous anxiety, stress, and depression that the teenagers in this story go through. I found this book to be a very accurate portrayal of what many or most 'overachievers' feel. Among my own friends in school, I have seen the competition for the best scores on the PS More...

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Jan 17, 2010

Ange rated it:

I picked this book up at Borders the other day because as somewhat of a former "Overachiever" myself I was curious as to what she would show in her book. This book is well researched and really gives you a feel for these high school students and their lives. It's not just about the pressure from the activities, classes, etc. It also discusses social issues like "Who to ask to prom?", dating, parties, etc. It's a very real and candid look at high school, the expectations More...

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May 22, 2009

Andrew rated it:

Not long ago, I finished the nonfiction novel, The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, by Alexandra Robbins. Ms. Campanella recommended the book to all her honors students, and for good reason—the characters, their situations, their conflicts, their pressures, and their mentalities were all attributes of a high school student that I found I could easily relate to.

For students at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Maryland and a Harvard college freshman, high school su More...

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May 21, 2009

Leslie rated it:

Especially in today’s society, education has become a fundamental aspect of people’s lives. As knowledge becomes more important in the workplace, the idea of only accepting the best of the best migrates itself into college admissions, thus condemning students to a high school life of competition. The Overachievers, The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, portrays the life of nine students, whose lives are based solely on entering that “dream” college of their themselves, their parents, or their More...

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May 21, 2009

Evan rated it:

The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids is a nonfiction book by Alexandra Robbins, about the intense academic lives of several teenagers in their struggle to attain perfection. I obviously chose to read this book because it’s required by my class, but it was also appealing to me because of the good reviews I’ve heard from others and the similar situation between the characters and myself. The story chronicles nine extraordinarily ambitious high school students who make overachieving a More...

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May 21, 2009

Adeela rated it:

Overachievers makes my head hurt (and no, I'm not talking about the people). Just reading the stories about such involved and over worked kids left me drained (and all I had to do was a few hundred pages). The Overachievers: The Secret Lives of Driven Kids by Alexandra Robbins was first recommended to me by my English 3 Honors teacher, Ms. Campanella. After putting off reading it all year, I finally decided (or rather, was required) to dive head first into this book that had so many of my friend More...

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May 21, 2009

Stuart rated it:

Although many of my classmates have said that The Overachievers, by Alexandra Robbins, is one of the most boring books they have read thus far, I have to politely disagree. If anything, the novel was interesting, but that isn’t the reason why I chose to read it. Actually, I didn’t necessarily choose to read it as the novel is a requirement for the English Honors class.

Essentially a biographical and non-fictional report on the lives of several students currently or formerly attend More...

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May 21, 2009

Patrick rated it:

In today's day and age, high school students are subject to countless internal and external pressures. They struggle to fit in or have trouble dealing with their schoolwork. Sometimes it seems like life is impossibly challenging. Alexandra Robbins captures this teenage struggle brilliantly within her novel, The Overachievers The Secret Lives of Driven Kids. The story focuses around nine students who are either in high school or in college already. These students are no ordinary students, for the More...

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May 21, 2009

Emily rated it:

We all know what the stress of high school can feel like. All the pressure to live up to parents' expectations, perform well on tests in comparison to peers, and getting into that dream college at the end seem to crush us all. What many of us don't realize though is that these pressures, while seemingly personal are experienced all over the United States and even more so all over the world. The pressure to succeed as been lifted to new heights as schools become more competitive and dangerously s

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