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The Sixth Form | 
 enlarge | Author: Tom Dolby
Publisher: Kensington
Category: Book
List Price: $15.00
Buy New: $10.20
You Save: $4.80 (32%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  15 reviews
Sales Rank: 3461315
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
ISBN: 0758222599
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780758222596
ASIN: 0758222599
Publication Date: January 1, 2009 (In 86 Days)
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Availability: Not yet published
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Product Description
From Tom Dolby, the acclaimed author of The Trouble Boy, comes an extraordinary new novel a sensitive coming of age tale and a compelling work of suspense that explores the price of innocence betrayed and the complexities of personal truth.
When seventeen-year-old Ethan Whitley leaves his home in California for Berkley Academy, a prestigious Massachusetts prep school, he's a blank slate, a shy follower of rules in search of himself. Ethan is given the chance to start over when he is hand-picked by his wealthy, disaffected classmate, Todd Eldon, and a seductive, enigmatic teacher, Hannah McClellan, a free spirit for whom rules were meant to be broken.
Life with Todd and Hannah is a revelation, an invitation to a world of privilege and desire trips to a glittering, gritty New York City with its Fifth Avenue penthouses and artists' lofts; clandestine encounters in the graveyard near Berkley's wooded campus; and private meetings at Hannah's secluded house where they can drink wine and read Rimbaud, testing their limits and temptation in equal measure. Looming over these heady evenings is the disturbing mystery of Hannah's fragmented past, one that Ethan longs desperately to understand.
As secrets are revealed, Ethan is pulled deep into the undertow of Hannah's history and Todd's longings. He learns that every deceit has a price, every lie an ugly truth, and that those he has come to trust are people he doesn't know at all. The most dangerous stories of all, though, may be the ones he has told himself.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 10 more reviews...
 Coming Of Age Novel With A Twist October 1, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This novel is an excellent read for teenagers and adults alike. Teens will relate for they are going through similar situations while adults will certainly remember when. Whatever your past is, this novel will surely make you think.
Ethan is a 17 year old who transfers to a prep school in Massachusetts where he meets and bonds with another boy Todd. They in turn meet and bond with a teacher at the school, Hannah. The story slowly unfolds here as it accurately portrays the wonders, yearnings, mysteries and questions that are a huge part of the life of a teenager. Through all this a very meaningful story unfolds as we find out more and more about this very unique threesome.
What you expect to happen does not and when done reading this exceptional book you will be truly amazed at all it encompassed. I don't want to give away much of the story so it doesn't ruin the journey you will take if you choose to pick up this novel.
Highly recommended. A very emotionally charged and honest coming of age novel for today.
Suspenseful Coming-of-Age Tale July 31, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This book really took me by surprise.
Four years ago, I read Dolby's first novel, THE TROUBLE BOY, and while I enjoyed it, felt that it hewed so closely to much of what's already out there in gay literature that it failed to leave a lasting impression. But with THE SIXTH FORM Dolby makes a quantum leap forward.
The story centers on the tangled relationships of three people over the course of one term at a posh New England prep school - Todd, the gay son of a wealthy New York author (in the vein of Danielle Steele or Jackie Collins), Ethan, the brainy [and straight] son of two middle class California intellectuals and Hannah, the unorthodox bohemian teacher who lures them into her orbit with her seemingly freewheeling attitude and her homebaked goodies. Most people might roll their eyes when they see that this is a "gay" novel that takes place in a private boarding school. And certaintly, the opportunity for cliches abound, but these are no stereotypes; they're complicated, down-to-earth characters with believable problems.
Dolby give the reader access to both Todd and Ethan's points of view, but lets Hannah's motives remain opaque. And because of this, I found myself drawn to her character in the same way the boys are - hungrily snatching at clues to her mysterious and tragic past. I'll admit to being impressed that a gay male writer took the time to create a three dimensional female character - even if she is clinging, deluded and predatory. It totally worked for me!
There's a lot of really good stuff here. Even the most minor secondary characters seem leap off the page - recognizable and fully formed. Todd's MILF-y mom and n'er-do-well dad, Ethan's saintly mother being devoured by disease, even the semi-closeted lesbian couple who teach at the school. The dialogue is very naturalistic. The interractions between characters are always revealing and enjoyable to read. Each scene moves along at a leisurely pace, but as a whole the book still reads quickly. And the story itself is a unique combination of love triangle (of sorts), mild suspense and coming of age.
Well done.
 Fatal Attraction pumped with Hormones April 26, 2008
What a great second book By Tom Dolby. It's night and day from his first novel. His first novel was fluff when this one really attached to your heart. What you think is going to turn out to be a love story between Ethan and Todd takes many twists and turns that lure you in and make you interested in all the characters - a true threesome.
The final pages of the book are very philosophical and really make the reader think about life and relationships. I found tears in my eyes as I related to every character at the end and could relate their experiences to ones of my own. Death, love, obession, desire, despair, freindship - it's all here in 1 novel.
This novel is truly marvelous. The writing is controlled and clear - this novel is both compelling and entertaining. Read it!
 adult lets down tale April 20, 2008
The two boys are well written and I believed in them, but I had strong doubts about the character of Hannah. She was two much the wicked witch from Hansel & Gretel with a bit of the wolf from Red Riding Hood. I could never believe that these two boys in a boarding school could sneak out all the time to her house unnoticed. And she is just two unstable to keep her job at the school.
A coming-of-age gem April 4, 2008
This is a coming-of-age story about one gay teen and one straight teen. This book is set at an East Coast prep school. The gay teen, Todd, is battling an internal conflict, coming to the realization that he is indeed gay and trying to understand and cope with that. The straight teen, Ethan, has something much more external to cope with--a 36-year-old female teacher whose interest in him is much more than educational. She leads Ethan to inner turmoil that no 18-year-old should have to deal with. This is a fantastic story with well-developed characters that unfolds in a well-paced fashion. A great read, which I heartily recommend.
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