The Overachievers Book Report

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Throughout the book The Overachievers:The Secret Lives of Driven Kids, Alexandra Robbins develops the theme of competition between the students at Whitman High School and the students she individually observed. The Journalist Alexandra Robbins returns to Whitman, where she attended her high school years to follow a few of Whitman’s upperclassmen and journal about their experiences in high school towards achieving admissions to top elite colleges and universities.The students she follows around are Taylor, Julie, Audrey, AP Frank, Sam, Pete, Ryland, Stealth Overachiever student, and C.J., which were Juniors and Seniors at Whitman. As she observes these nine students at Whitman High School, she discovers that High School was an indirect battleground between students who competed against each other for best grades, top scores in standardized tests, best athletic achievements, and their admissions towards post …show more content…

During her visit to Whitman, Alexandra made comparisons between her high school years and the high school years of the upperclassmen observed. She noticed the variety of differences between them because during her years there was not much palpable competition but now there was between the students at Whitman. The competition of getting the best grades was a huge deal to the students because their grades were a factor to getting admitted to the college of their choice. Pete a junior student at Whitman, was one of the many overachievers who put in the effort to get the best grades he could even if it meant to risk his own health. Pete was a straight A student who one night took so much caffeine to complete a paper that was due the next day. After he took it he was able to concentrate and get the paper