Skippy Dies by Paul Murray

I am not sure about this book. I picked it up because the coverlet seemed like an interesting story but at 600 pages was not convinced at all that it would be worth the investment. The book starts slowly as we are introduced to various characters in the book. These include Carl an upper member of the Seabrook academy for boys who is a drug dealing lunatic to Skippy a second year who is small for his size and lives with a heavy burden.

The main character if there is one is Skippy. Several faculty members including the acting Principal known as the Automator and Harold a young teacher who 10 years ago had been graduating from Seabrook. Howard the Coward as he is known is a figure most of us can relate too. He has what he wanted but then wants more and in the process loses it all.

Skippy's roommate Ruprecht is a Science spewing genius. It is noted he raises the Seabrook test scores 4 percent all by himself. Ruprecht is obsessed with string theory and unfortunately donuts which make him larger and larger. His dream is to go to Stanford.

Skippy falls in love with a day student at St Brigid's academy which is placed conveniently across the quad from his dorm room. Most of the girls at St Brigid's have been ensnared in a diet pill popping scheme run by Carl and his friend Barry. Skippy gets caught in a triangle in which he is used for cover for some very grown up activities.

As you can see there is alot going on. Still the book takes a decidedly darker turn in the last third. There we find crippled teachers getting students drunk, taking advantage of them, and in the name of protecting the school getting away with it. We see Lorelei, the girl of Skippy's dreams reduced to an anorexic mental patient and we see Ruprecht obsess over how he could have saved Skippy if he had not been so self absorbed.

The unanswered question is what teenager is not self absorbed. Indeed what person?

A good book, a bit of a haunting book. I am still undecided on how good I think it was.