Trust Exercise: A Novel
Winner of the 2019 National Book Award for Fiction. In an American suburb in the early 1980s, students at a highly competitive performing arts high school struggle and thrive in a rarified bubble, ambitiously pursuing music, movement, Shakespeare, and, particularly, their acting classes. The outside world of family life and economic status, of academic pressure and of their future adult lives, fails to penetrate this school’s walls—until it does, in a shocking spiral of events that catapults the action forward in time and flips the premise upside-down. As captivating and tender as it is surprising, Susan Choi's Trust Exercise will incite heated conversations about fiction and truth, and about friendships and loyalties, and will leave readers with wiser understandings of the true capacities of adolescents and of the powers and responsibilities of adults.
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Community Reviews
First, the writing is excellent. There are three parts with distinct writing styles- all excellent. The plot of the first part is very difficult to get through, often angsty and painful to read. The second part takes on a different voice and I personally enjoyed that section the most. The last section felt excessive to me and also not enjoyable. My review is a bit vague as I have to avoid spoiling the book but I will say that the reality in the book shifts and shifts and my husband and I can't even agree on what takes place even in the abstract. It kind of makes me want to read it again and map it out, but I probably won't reread this anytime soon.
This is a 3.5 star rating from me. This is a great book for discussion groups, especially if you have a group of old theatre kids you can throw together. Plot and perspective shifts that force the reader to question their assumptions about characters and settings as the truth is refracted and ever-shifting. Not a pleasant book. Not a fun read. But interesting. I’m mostly glad it’s over.
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