School of Lies by Mickey Hoffman

SCHOOL OF LIES

Mickey Hoffman

Published by Second Wind Publishing

ISBN# 1935171291

Novelist Mickey Hoffman sets her “School of Lies” on ground more familiar to public school teachers than they are apt to admit in casual conversation, and teachers in particular are sure to enjoy this impressive novelistic debut. But you don’t have to be a high school teacher to see the author knows of what she speaks; opening your eyes a couple of times before putting on the old cap and gown is about all Mickey Hoffman requires of you–and that’s not a bad way of thinking about the book itself, for this is a carefully observed work of fiction, one that rings true when it might seem to be dealing in the preposterous, and seems delightfully preposterous when it’s dealing in anything else.

Second Wind is a press with a growing reputation and this latest addition to its inventory bodes well for its future. The tensions in “School of Lies:” are taut; the characters, particularly Kendra, Hoffman’s much wronged protagonist, are generally right on the money. It’s common knowledge that teachers are supposed to have all the answers, but set foot in Hoffman’s world and you see how little it takes to dispell that long-held illusion, even to a someone reasonably seasoned in academe. That you can’t trust anyone, Kendra already suspects near the novel’s beginning; but that you can’t trust in the truth becomes something she has to learn, and we’re right with her for that process.

This is a book worth reading for any number of reasons–how much more fun it is than doing your homework, to name but one.

This review was written by Sophie and is reprinted from Amazon.