As advertised. One dad's story about college admissions. Ferguson is a talented writer and tells an entertaining story. In many ways, this book is more about the parent's journey than the student's though there are useful details. ( )

Not a memoir, more a reflection on the process of college admissions these days and how truly insane it is. Humorous, illuminating and deeply cynical all at once. ( )

This was a fun read. Again, not a whole lot of "Wow, I needed to know that!" info, but it was funny and entertaining. Confirmed my "this is a scam and a huge waste of money" bias, though. ( )

The first couple of chapters were really fun to read - the writing was extraordinarily good for the subject matter. Unhappily, the quality slipped considerably from there, and it became just another yawn inducing book.

Andrew Ferguson’s Crazy U is an end-to-end winner.

Faced with the daunting task of getting a seemingly unfocused and lackadaisical son into a ‘good college’, Ferguson takes us along for the very funny ride through college rankings, applications, campus visits, wild-eyed parents rapidly losing their minds, and all the accoutrements of the overblown, overpriced, over-rated empire that is American higher education.

Although Crazy U is mostly for fun, there is plenty here to stop concerned readers (i.e. other parents with kids coming up to college age) right in their tracks. It’s actually a very useful, palatable introduction to the whole sordid process.

Recommended. ( )