Confessions of an Ivy League Frat Boy: A Memoir

As a teenager, author Lohse stayed between the lines, finished his homework, and was president of his high school model U.N. The reward: admission to Dartmouth College. In his sophomore year, he did the expected and pledged a fraternity, undergoing a grueling initiation process that eventually led to a drug habit. After being ratted out by a fraternity brother for using cocaine, Lohse was arrested and suspended from Dartmouth for a year. The hazing chapters are the most vivid as Lohse submits to binge drinking, competitive vomiting, and bathing in human waste. Elsewhere, his dry humor and contemplative moments keep the pages turning. However, deeper emotions and complexities don’t fully emerge. No one, not even his best friends and lovers, become recognizable, while the description of the book’s central drama, the drug bust, seems implausible (perhaps for legal reasons). While Lohse sheds a clear light on the tribal stupidity of young men, his own turmoil is left underdeveloped. [em](Sept.) [/em]