The novel
Hacking Harvard by Robin Wasserman starts with a prank.
Readers quickly learn that these characters aim to do things that will
make people stop and think, to consider what's happening - no whoopee
cushions or silly hacks, but rather, something that means something,
that makes a statement.
The bet is to get someone into Harvard
that wouldn't get in otherwise. Not a prank, Max clarifies, but a hack.
Forget the kid stuff they've done before - this will be something huge,
powerful, meaningful. Schwarz doesn't want to get expelled. Eric doesn't
want to do something immoral. They find out that this is a bet Max made
with the Bongo Bums. Named after Richard Feynman, a prankster and bongo
player, they are two juniors from Boston Latin High School who make
bets and do things for bragging rights, and want a rivalry with the
other boys, who'd rather be left alone and do their own thing. Max
pretends the bet is for $100 but the amount increases throughout the
book.
"We're going to take the biggest loser we can find - the
least ambitious, least intelligent, least motivated, most delinquent
and drugged-up slacker we can get our hands on - and we're going to
sucker this school into letting him in." At least, that's what is
shared with the readers on page 46. Our players are not so forthcoming
with the full details. Readers learn more about the terms and the payout
as the book goes on.
It's not about sabotaging the other party's
candidate but getting your own candidate IN. They get a tough guy named
Clay who beat Eric up as a kid, when Eric tried to stand up for other
kids and ended up as the punching bag.
Also along for the ride is
Alexandra Talese. Wanting a name that is a little daring and edgy, she
has decided to go by Lex in college. She takes the name out on trial run
during her first in-depth conversation with Eric, after the SATs.
Lex
wants to go to Harvard of her own choosing, not for the sake of
"superficial, society-imprinted, consumerist non-entities," not legacy,
but because she wants it, because she thinks it's the best school to
attend, the result of her extensive college research:
"I had
made my pro/con charts, carefully weighed all the options, and chosen a
winner. There was a reason Harvard had a reputation for being the best,
I'd decided, and the reputation was self-fulfilling, because it meant
Harvard got the best -- the best students, the best professors,
the best resources -- which I meant I wanted it to get me. I wanted to
get lost in the country's biggest library; I wanted to learn Shakespeare
from a grand master while staring up at a ceiling carved hundreds of
years before. [...] I wanted to be in awe of the school, the teachers,
the history, the legacy -- I wanted to be terrified I wouldn't measure
up. I wanted to prove that I could." - Page 83
Lex reveals
that she uses knowledge to her advantage - not just her book smarts, but
the things she knows about certain people. She doesn't sabotage them in
a physical or evil way, but she casually (or otherwise) lets people's
secrets slip out so that she is picked over them: running for sixth
grade president, talking the other girl out of joining the newspaper
staff in ninth grade, then holding her position on the yearbook staff -
this girl's theme song should be Use What I Got by Lucy Woodward!
(1)
So
why would an overachiever team up with the bums? Because although she
had great grades, community service, leadership positions, and school
staff positions, she felt like there was nothing outstanding about her,
nothing that set her apart. No national awards or anything unique,
outstanding, international, or amazing. She was not one-of-a-kind, she
was not a special snowflake, she was merely one of many smart fishes in
the sea:
"Nothing set me apart. Nothing to make me special." - Page 213
Throughout
the story, Eric is the voice of reason. He considers himself a realist,
and he normally abides by the honor system, doing the right thing
because it's right, so he really struggles with the bet. Eric is Jewish
and says that instead of doing good deeds in life in order to earn a
wonderful afterlife in an eternal paradise,
"Judaism isn't about what happens next. It's about what happens here,
in this life. You don't necessarily get rewarded for doing the right
thing; you don't get punished for doing the wrong thing. You're supposed
to be a good person just because that's the right thing to do. Doing
the right thing -- that's the reward." - Page 170
Max
Kim is a legacy, with his father and two older sisters all Harvard
grads. Max likes to sell 80s items on eBay and thinks things should have
a 500% profit. He's in this not just for his father or Harvard, but
because of what they've been told:
"It's about all the (nonsense)
they've been feeding us since preschool: Do your homework, be good, fall
in line, do what we say, and maybe, if you're lucky, you'll get the
golden ticket. We're supposed to act like the only thing that matters is
getting into college -- getting into this college - and so most
of the people who do get in are the ones who buy into the (nonsense) so
completely that they've never done anything for any other reason. It
doesn't matter what they want, what they like, what they care about, who
they are -- they don't even know anymore, because they're trying so
(darn) hard to be the people Harvard wants them to be. In the end
they're not even real people anymore. They're zombies." - Page 47 (Yes, I replaced the swear words for the sake of my younger readers. I'm sure you can fill in the blanks.)
Let's
not forget Schwarz: geeky fellow, camera peeping got him out of their
high school and homeschooled for two years. Now 16 and a Harvard
freshman, this 96-pound weakling prefers numbers and photographs to
real-life people, as humans are inherently flawed and photographs trap
beauty on the page. Schwarz is eloquent. He doesn't necessarily use huge
words, but he always uses full sentences and sometimes sounds a little
antiquated (
"I was not doing anything of any importance") as he
actively avoids swearing and contractions (he tends to say "it is"
rather that "it's"). He is awed by beautiful college girl named
Stephanie who whines to him about her dates and breakups. He would be
right at home in an 80s movie - and Max would then sell the movie poster
on eBay.
The book also closes like a classic teen movie,
providing information on what happened to all of the major players after
high school - what colleges they attended, what career paths they
followed, et cetera. There's also a disclaimer from the author asking
readers not to hack in because it would be wrong, illegal, and dumb, and
it's clear that she has both compassion for rising seniors dealing with
college applications and total respect for admissions officers.
Wasserman
is great at creating characters who are fueled by their goals and
intentions, be they good or bad, selfish or selfless. The following
speech is particularly awesome:
"Imagine there was something
you really wanted. Not something petty, like knee-high leather boots or a
new boyfriend, but something major. Something so significant that it
would change your life forever. And imagine that you wanted that thing
the way a child wants, without perspective, a wholehearted longing that
consumed your entire being with the certainty that life would not, could not
continue without it. Imagine that, like a child, you had no control
over getting your heart's desire. You couldn't do anything other than
lie awake at night and wish, furiously, desperately, hopelessly --
because, not actually being a child, you would know that wishing
was useless. You would know that there are no magic wishes, no fairy
godmothers descending with a wink and a want. Still, useless or not, you
would dutifully squeeze your eyes shut every night, curl your hands
into fists, listen to your heart thus, and, like a child, let yourself
believe that someone was listening when you whispered: I wish. Now imagine that your wish was granted." - Pages 205-206
The
book is mostly told in third person with first person woven in at the
start, making readers curious about the narrator's identity until it is
revealed - and it totally works.
Enjoy the book - but don't get any ideas, okay?
(1) Use What I Got by Lucy Woodward is an amazing song
I have been known to listen to/belt out in order to pump myself up
before a big event. I had the opportunity to sing it at an audition once
- and I booked the gig.
- Review by Little Willow from Bildungsroman
*WARNING! If the very thought of crawling in tight spaces has you hyperventilating or induces nightmares, then read BENEATH by Roland Smith with caution. Really! Seriously!