Community Reviews
It's hard to give a novella 4 or 5 stars, but this one made me feel things in such a short number of pages, which means it deserves 4 stars. I think this would have made a better long form story, rather than a novella. As it happened, there was not a satisfactory conclusion between the two main characters. But I enjoyed the call back to Evan's mom.
The Price of Admission was my favorite short story in The Edge of Everything Amazon Originals collection. Dustin Thao managed to fit class differences, grief, first love, ambition, and growing up into 40 pages without making it feel rushed or disjointed. Evan and Dalton’s relationship also gave the collection lovely LGBTQ+ representation.
Evan Dao grows up around wealth without ever belonging to it. His mother works at a hotel owned by Dalton Claremont’s family. The boys spend their childhood in the same building while living completely different lives. Evan eventually receives the opportunity to attend Dalton’s elite private school after losing his mother. Their worlds become much harder to keep separate.
Evan broke my heart a little. He is smart and hardworking, but he is also painfully aware of how much money separates him from his classmates. At one point, he saves his own money to buy expensive tennis shoes just to fit in. Dalton compliments them and Evan felt like he was fitting in. Then, Dalton and his friends continue to exclude Evan. I wanted to hug Evan. He was trying so hard to look like he belonged among kids who never had to think twice about what their shoes cost.
The class divide gave the romance a twist. Evan and Dalton care about each other, but money and social status keep affecting their relationship. Evan constantly has to prove that he deserves access to spaces Dalton has occupied his entire life. That made Evan getting into Princeton through his own accomplishments satisfying. He did not need Dalton, Dalton’s family, or anyone else’s money to get him there.
Dalton’s behavior at Princeton surprised me. Watching him distance himself from Evan after everything they shared was disappointing. Evan deserved someone proud to know him and not someone willing to make him feel small.
Dustin Thao gave me believable characters and a coherent storyline in very few pages. I would have happily spent more time with Evan. I finished his story thinking one very important thing. Dalton did not deserve Evan.