From the Bookshelf of Online Reading Challenge…

The Topeka School

Ben Lerner

Start date: April 1, 2025

Finish date: April 30, 2025

Why we're reading this: Online Reading Challenge: April 2025 Pick for Coming of Age / Bildungsroman
[close] Online Reading Challenge: April 2025 Pick for Coming of Age / Bildungsroman

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Mar 28, 2025 Stephanie rated it liked it

Shelves: 2025-reads

I went into 'The Topeka School' by Ben Lerner not knowing much about it, other than it was a coming of age book, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and one of the New York Times 10 best books of the year. This book was outside the norm of what I would normally read. The Topeka School won many accolades and awards, but I can honestly say that I would not have picked this book up on my own had it not been for my online book club.
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Set in the American Midwest, this family drama begins in the 1990s with Adam I went into 'The Topeka School' by Ben Lerner not knowing much about it, other than it was a coming of age book, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and one of the New York Times 10 best books of the year. This book was outside the norm of what I would normally read. The Topeka School won many accolades and awards, but I can honestly say that I would not have picked this book up on my own had it not been for my online book club.
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Set in the American Midwest, this family drama begins in the 1990s with Adam Gordon, a senior at Topeka High School, the class of 1997. His parents both work at a psychiatric clinic in Topeka, Kansas that attracts patients from all over the world. His mother Jane is a famous author, while his father Jonathan is known for his ability to get lost young boys to open up. Jane's book angers some members of the public who take out their outrage on Jane and her family by harassing them. Outside of school, Adam is a debater, who people expect to win a national championship. Despite his status on the debate team, Adam is one of the cool kids. He and his friends are told by their parents to be friendly to Darren Eberheart, a loner who also happens to be a patient of Adam's father. Darren is awkward and his entrance into their social circle ends in a catastrophe.
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While the summary I laid out above seems pretty straight-forward, the formatting of this book is anything but. The Topeka School shifts between time periods, perspectives, and narrators, which turned confusing. While I enjoyed the multiple perspectives, the jump in timelines made it difficult to know just where we were at in the story. The plot did end up making sense towards the end, but honestly I was so turned around in the middle that at parts I contemplated giving up. This book covers heavy topics: toxic masculinity, marital transgressions, abuse, public speech, and struggle for identity. Lerner isn't afraid to pile on more and more topics within the changing timelines, but honestly the writing was so dense that I had trouble picking through to find the bones of the story. The characters are complex, somewhat dysfunctional, and written with an introspective feel. To me, this book was a complex web of stories, characters, and topics presented with dense language that I had trouble paying attention to for long periods of time. My main tip for reading this book: read small pieces at a time. Doing so made this book easier for me, even though it took me much longer to read it! All in all, I'm glad I read it, but it's a 3 of 5 stars. ...more

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Apr 09, 2025 Emily added it

Shelves: did-not-finish, audiobooks, fiction

DNF at 25%

I hated the characters, the narrative style, and the audiobook narrators.

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Mar 31, 2025 Davenport Public Library Iowa rated it liked it

Shelves: staff-reads

Apr 25, 2025 Natalie rated it liked it

Shelves: dnf

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