Providence

In The Final Club , student Nathaniel Clay experiences the dark side of 1950s Princeton after he is blackballed by the school's prestigious eating clubs. PW called this ironic novel ``emotionally and sociologically accurate . . . a work that combines nostalgia and cynicism to powerful effect.'' Wolff's earlier book, Providence , is the often violent tale of Rhode Island criminal lawyer Adam Dwyer. Here, the ``setting and characters come alive in a way that may shock and frighten some readers; all but the very squeamish will be entertained.'' (Nov.)