Kiley Reid’s new novel is Such a Fun Age.At LitHub she tagged five novels with incredible child caregivers, including:
Marisha Pessl, Special Topics In Calamity PhysicsRead about another entry on the list.
What I love about Special Topics In Calamity Physics are the numerous ways Marisha Pessl tells a story; there are countless lists and references and multiple choice equations and song lyrics. What I love about Hannah Schneider, the novel’s mysterious cinema teacher, is her witch-like appeal, hercunningness, and Pessl’s smartly applied mixture of insecurity and inappropriateness. Hannah privately selects promising students to attend cocktail and dinner parties at her home, but the promise of these students has little to do with their academic behavior. They are high schoolers, and while they don’t need to be looked after, they fall under Hannah’s spell. They seek Hannah’s approval and compete for her love. When danger presents itself, they look to her for safety, but by that time, it’s far too late.
Special Topics in Calamity Physics is among Brian Boone's fifty essential high school stories.
The Page 69 Test: Special Topics in Calamity Physics.
--Marshal Zeringue
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