PREP
Jake Coburn
Dutton
Fiction
ISBN: 0525471359
176 pages

New York's prep school teens seem to have everything --- money, nice homes and promising futures. PREP exposes the seamy underside --- brutal gangs in designer clothes, drugs, beatings and more. The story follows Nick, formerly the famous Thet who tagged the city with his graffiti signature of DOA. Nick thinks he has left the whole street rep thing behind him two years ago, but is drawn in again to help a friend.

It is always disconcerting to read about Caucasians trying to talk like African-American hip-hop stars, but it illustrates one of the points of the book --- no one is who they seem. Nick himself has layers and secrets. One secret is that he is in love with his best friend Kris and wants to tell her.

Jake Coburn's plot of THE OUTSIDERS meets A SEPARATE PEACE and CATCHER IN THE RYE is compelling, but at times his characters get in the way. They are the least believable when they try to have deep conversations. Why are the main characters always off writing or dropping book titles? Coburn may be trying to demonstrate that some of his characters do more than just party. New writers sometimes have a tendency to tell, not show, and that is the case here at times. Or perhaps the author is too close to the subject, as his bio explains that PREP is based on his teenage life in New York City.

Character problems aside, the plot is fast-paced and the descriptions of city life are vivid. PREP is interesting reading, even for those who live outside of New York.

   --- Reviewed by Amy Alessio

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