School's Out

(Paperback)

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Description

A strikingly original, acidly funny and surreal French first novel, a cross between Michel Houellebecq, Alan Warner and Lord of the Flies. The stuff of which cults are made. When a teacher is found dead, having apparently committed suicide, his friend Pierre Hoffman takes over class 4F and finds himself responsible for a group of strangely subdued, well-behaved and yet menacing pupils. Assuming their behaviour to be a response to the trauma of their teacher's death, Pierre Hoffman at first takes it easy with the precocious class, refusing to embrace the hostility felt by other staff members towards the children. Over the weeks that follow, however, he receives a series of signals and warnings that cause him to question the motivations of his pupils and the circumstances of his colleague's suicide. Refusing to believe that the situation can be any more sinister than his suspicious imagination, Hoffman applauds and supports class 4F's decision to organise a school trip to the Normandy coast. Only once the trip has begun, however, does Hoffman begin to understand the extent of their bizarre solidarity and their ultimate goal...

Reviews

Dufosse's debut has garnered high praise in his native France and it is easy to see why. The narrative is fast-paced and compelling, the writing assured and witty -- Michael Arditti * Daily Mail *
The story hurtles towards a creepy climax with jet-black humour and style -- Kate Saunders * The Times *
The debut everyone is talking about... A brilliant first novel, that forcibly reminds one of Donna Tartt's A Secret History * Elle *
There is a vague air of menace throughout...Dufosse [is] a shrewd observer of eccentric behaviour -- Paul Bailey * Guardian *
Dufosse is roughly what you'd get if you crossed Houellebecq with Alan Warner. His writing is cool, sexy and sinister * Esquire *

Author Bio

A former schoolteacher, Christophe Dufosse lives in Paris. School's Out is his first novel. Winner of the Prix du Premier Roman, it is being translated into ten languages.