Prep

Curtis Sittenfeld’s story joins a large canon of novels about boarding schools/prep schools, and one of the most famous books is The Catcher in the Rye (1951) by the 20th-century American author J. D. Salinger. Many critics compare Lee to Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of Salinger’s book, with The Washington Post titling Hank Stuever’s article on Sittenfeld and Prep “Move Over, Holden” (23 Feb. 2015). Holden and Lee have much in common, with their infectiously idiosyncratic voices that can veer from irony to sincerity. Specific moments from Prep echo parts in Catcher. For English class, Lee hands in an essay with a note that she doesn’t care about the topic. For history class, Holden tells his teacher the lectures don’t interest him. Holden helps a student cheat on a writing assignment, and Martha helps Lee cheat on a math exam.

Lee and Holden are far from doubles. They have many differences. While Lee wants to fit into Ault, Holden hates Pencey Prep and publicly expresses his contempt for the place and its students. Pencey expels Holden (as have many other prep schools), but Lee doesn’t want Ault to expel her during “spring-cleaning.