I never ended up reading this book so I am unable to review. Will read at a later date and update review

I wanted to like this book! I am so sorry to share that it was a DNF- Do not finish for me. I feel like the premise was so interesting to me, but I just could not get into the characters' storylines. Thank you so much for the opportunity and I have no doubt there will be readers who love it!

I had the privilege of reading and reviewing an ARC of this book. This was my first book by the very satirical Scott Johnston. I found the beginning of the book quite entertaining with glimpses into the underpinnings of the University and privileged students and faculty, especially the influence of the donors! But then it became a little too much with the quirky and predictable stereotypes of the characters and situations. I may have just been me in a slump, but struggled to get into the fate of Ephraim and his girlfriend as he is involved in scandals beyond his control at Devon.

I do love a good campus novel, so Scott Johnson's "Campusland" was bound to catch my attention. Unlike many "literary" campus novels, this one amps up the "satire" in its examination of life at a modern university campus. In particular, the heightened passions and politics of many students - a necessary part of life, as we come to figure out what we believe, as opposed to what we've been brought up to believe.

In some ways, this is a campus novel for the social media age: if you're familiar with the performative, competitive emotions online, then you might have an idea of what is covered in Campusland. The satire/humour doesn't always land, and there are some moments that rather glibly dismiss ongoing issues that do deserve more attention and passion in order to make a difference. Otherwise, it is an exaggeration of much of what we see online. Some of the interpretations of behaviour are a little simplistic, and it's not as clever as the best satires. It seems more interested in poking fun at, rather than properly examining.

It's easy to punch-down, or "dunk" on college students, but the best authors are able to do it while simultaneously recognizing that they're often on the right track. I'm also not convinced that the best way to highlight the "sophomoric" nature of some college students' behaviour is through... sophomoric humour. (Julie Schumacher and Richard Russo, in my opinion, have written the best campus novels.)

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I selected Campusland by Scott Johnston, but I ended up loving this brilliant work of satire focused on the over-the-top and often sanctimonious “woke” culture of the elite Ivy-league campuses. Come for the laugh-out-loud moments and stay for the accurate social commentary on these elite institutions, who may at times go a bit too far for the sake of proving how progressive and socially-conscious they are. I loved it!

I’m shocked this book hasn’t received more attention and accolades. I found it brilliant! Having attended an elite private college in the Pacific Northwest with similar “woke” culture, I laughed so many times while reading this. Scott Johnston does a brilliant job of showing how what often starts as well-intentioned movements can be taken (particularly in these sorts of campuses) to the extreme, where the actual purpose of the cause is often lost by the theatrics surrounding the faux-activism.

Centering around English professor Eph Russell who is hoping to achieve tenure in the current academic year, Campusland delves into the question of what happens when campus culture is taken too far, and rational thought is replaced by fear of backlash from cancel culture.

Eph is from rural Alabama, not the norm for the elite professors at Devon University. But Eph also stands out as the most rational, fair, and open-minded character in the novel. He strives to be simply a good professor, and challenge his students to learn from the great writers throughout history. But he is no match for the university administration, who jump at the slightest hint of pushback from cancel culture sweeping the student population.

There is a particularly humorous exchange in a chapter aptly names "I Feel like" between a student and Eph, when the student articulates how she feels upset that the curriculum in in Eph’s course on 19th Century Romanticism and Realism lacks enough minority representation. Eph points out that this is the consensus about the great works from that period in history, and the student responds “Whose consensus? Other people of privilege? I think we all know the answer to that, don’t we?”

Meanwhile the book is peppered with other narrators from the campus, including the President of the University, a privileged white student who fakes a stint of activism to gain a social media following and leads people to falsely believe she was sexually assaulted (a belief she does nothing to correct), a black student activist named Red who spends his time searching for the next cause he can highlight, and the head of the university’s bias response team (a team of one) who pretends to represent a larger team while unilaterally making decisions.

One of the key messages of the book is whether some institutions like the fictional Devon may have gone so far that we are now in a classic case of the lunatics running the asylum. Where the fear of not being progressive enough has now led the administration to act without thought or investigation, often undermining the integrity of the causes they are seeking to support and leading innocent people to be collateral damage. Ironically, the most open and honest character who seeks to learn and be a better ally is Eph, the rural southern white male professor. There is also great contrast to the faux activists who lead many of the problematic scenarios in other students, who show up to support and advocate for real issues that matter, but are drowned out by the spectacle made by the other events of the novel.

A brilliant work of satirical fiction that hits close to home. I loved it!

Thank you to St Martin’s Press for my copy. Opinions are my own.

An interesting read, a bit of a struggle to get through but overall ok - I appreciate the opportunity to review it!

Campusland is a fun read. If you enjoy satire than this book is for you. It's well written and covers a lot of controversial topics involved in college life.

The book follows Eph Russell, he is an english professor and Devon a fictional ivy league college set in New England. You're introduced to a small cast of characters; Lulu Harris a freshman at Devon who could give Blair Waldorf a run for her money. Red Wheeler a perpetual student.

Not my normal read, and I appreciate that St. Martin's Press and Netgalley provided it for me free in exchange for a review.

This was a good book to read with everything going on in the world. I feel like times have certainly changed even since I graduated college 24 years ago. I think people are starting to change to be more inclusive of all races, sexual identity, and gender pronouns. I think people even just a few years older than me are hesitant to make the adjustments based on their years of thinking the other way.

It was nice in this story to be able to see both perspectives. While there was a lot of frustrating situations, it felt like everything worked out in the end.

I would suggest this book for sure.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

In my opinion, this book started out strong and funny but lost the way a little when the plot turned to sexual harassment and racial politics. It cam less and less plausible as the book went on. I do recommend it though because of the humor and the look at what goes on behind the scenes at colleges.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, Campusland was not for me - I am having a hard time focusing lately and this one just did not grip me or hold me.

I was pleasantly surprised with this one! At first I didn’t think I was going to like it but then I kept on reading and the characters really stood out to me.

Devon University is like an Ivy League school, the creme de la creme, the type of school where the people you meet and the things you learn can set you up for life. Professor Ephraim Russell chose it specifically to hide his low-brow Alabama roots. Social justice warrior and seventh-year student Red Wheeler chose it as a way to bring woke redress to the underclasspersons. Social climber and influencer-wannabe Lulu Harris chose it as a place to launch her brand. Add in sororities, feminists, cliques, special interests, alcohol, and panicky donors, and you’ve got a recipe for the wildest year on campus yet.

Professor Russell’s hopes for tenure go up in smoke when a group of rabble-rousers attend his literature class where he talks about The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and attack him verbally about choosing such a problematic book, putting him on the spot, and using their phones to record short videos, which they upload to the internet. That puts the alumni and Devon President Milton Strauss on notice, so when his office is overtaken by students wanting change and then Lulu starts a one-woman protest that goes viral, Strauss feels the pressure to keep everyone happy.

As the insults fly and harassment claims come to the forefront, it is only when all the students end up at the same protest at the same time that the whole campus implodes in this satire of modern campus life. Campusland by Scott Johnston is a crazy, vivid look at what an happen when people take ideas to extremes just to get some attention on their pet projects.

I love a good satire, but I admit I struggled with this one. There was something about it that made me feel connected to the drama, that made me feel the pain of those unjustly drawn into the drama. That makes me think that Johnston’s writing is excellent, and that any issues I had with this story were mine. Maybe it just felt a little too soon for some of these story lines. But my feelings aside, if you’re interested in reading a satire about campus life these days, then by all means, let Scott Johnston enroll you in Devon, and make sure you are strapped safely in place for this roller coaster of a story.

Galleys for Campusland were provided by St. Martin’s Press through NetGalley, with many thanks.

Campusland by Scott Johnson checks all the stereotypes of elite university life. Put together, it creates an extreme picture that might make you say that it could not happen. Except that some of it does. The events can individually be found on many a campus. The author creates a cohesive story out of a composite of reality in a way that is entertaining and funny while at the same time a serious commentary on the state of our eduction system.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2020/03/campusland.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

This is a cute look into the Ivy League world. It was funny, surprising and kept me entertained. I enjoyed it very much.

I highly recommend this book, even if you didn't go to college it is an entertaining and inspired view of life in a college town, the characters Eph and D'arcy were very fun and well written and the plot was great!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing me with debut author Scott Johnston’s novel, Campusland, in exchange for an honest review.

Devon University is a “not-quite Ivy League” east-coast institution that has provided a quality education for generations. Through fond memories and rich traditions, Devon has built a strong group of wealthy alumni, who are happy to support their alma matter, as long as it continues to reflect the values they treasure.

However, there is a problem. The world is changing and life at Devon is beginning to reflect the most extreme state of these changes.

Campusland is a satire and it is laugh-out-loud hilarious. Johnston pokes at several issues, however important they may be, that have spiraled out of control due to a lack of common sense. For example, when Freshman student Lulu Harris takes a spill and is injured on campus, no one will believe her when she tells them the truth: she was not sexually assaulted. Instead of believing the truth, the situation escalates to the point that Lulu feels that she has to name an accuser and decides to point the finger at her professor, Eph Russell.

Lulu is complicated. She is a NYC party girl, who is stuck at a college far from the city and is feeling her status slip away. She has failed at making friends and can’t seem to catch a break. Lulu had a bit of a crush on Eph and his rejection stung, however she did not initially intend on blaming him or anyone else. She tried to tell the truth, but no one would believe her word. When she names Eph as her attacker, she realizes that she has an opportunity to promote her social status through a social cause. In a calculated move, Lulu starts a nightly ritual of crawling through campus. Lulu’s crawl is silent and she never speaks of her “assault,” however other people assume that she is making a statement and speaking on behalf of all sexual assault victims. Lulu becomes a sensation and she doesn’t correct any of the assumptions.

Currently, with so many powerful men being accused of sexual assault, there is such outcry at women not being believed when they are attacked, this shows the same problem in a reverse situation. Lulu was never attacked, but no one will believe her. She is only believed, when she becomes the victim that people want her to be. Her voice has actually been silenced by the very people who pretend to support her. It’s sick.

Eph, the true victim, is a white male from the South and he is helpless as his career go down the drain. Not only is he accused by Lulu, but prior to the Lulu situation, his course syllabus comes under attack by students accusing him of racism for teaching “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” and for not including more writers of color. Eph has counter argument to their accusations, but the momentum of this group, including many students who are not enrolled in his class, grows. Eph keeps expecting that his luck will change and that surely having truth on his side will prevail. However, not even the clearest proof of his innocence will stop those who want him gone. By virtue of his historical power of being a white male, he is not allowed to be the victim and the people who have the power to help him, see it as a loss, if they accept the truth of his innocence.

At Devon, having power is more important than morals or truth. Fairness is a sham.

Campusland reflects a world where common sense is missing and extremism rules. This is a story world where people are very divided and there is no room for civil debate. It is uncomfortable and reflects our current world with a “You’re either with us or against us” attitude.

I loved Campusland. Johnston’s novel is a hilarious page-turner that is a keen observation of our society. I can’t wait to read Johnston’s next book.

3.5 stars
My sister works at Harvard as one of their librarians so any time I see a book about an ivy league college, I find myself drawn to it.

The summary of this book promised to include all the things that I find captivating about ivy league schools…..elitism and rich people problems. I couldn’t pass on this one because I was too drawn to the idea of it.

This is a book that I wouldn’t normally pick up in the store or really be drawn to if I’m being honest, but I liked the summary and the fact that this author is also a Yale alum. This is Scott Johnston’s first novel his having attended Yale, I think indicates he has first hand knowledge and even more authenticity to add to a book like this and made me eager to check it out.

Summary

A tumultuous and often hilarious first novel about one year of insanity at the Ivy-like Devon University, a blissful bubble of elite students and the adults at their mercy.

Eph Russell is an English professor up for tenure. He may look and sound privileged, but Eph is right out of gun-rack, Bible-thumping rural Alabama. His beloved Devon, though, has become a place of warring tribes, and there are landmines waiting for Eph that he is unequipped to see. The cultural rules are changing fast.

Lulu Harris is an entitled freshman—er, firstyear—from Manhattan. Her singular ambition is to be a prominent socialite – an “It Girl.” While most would kill for a place at Devon, to her college is a dreary impediment. She is pleasantly surprised to find some people she can tolerate in the Fellingham Society, a group of self-professed campus monarchists. When things become socially difficult, Lulu is forced to re-channel her ambition in a most unexpected way – as a militant feminist. In the process, she and Eph will find their fates at odds.

Also in the mix is Red Wheeler, who is in his seventh year at Devon, and is carefully managing his credits to stay longer. As the alpha dog atop Devon’s progressive hierarchy, Red is the most “woke” guy on campus. But when his position is threatened, he must take measures.

All paths collide in a riotous climax. Campusland is a timely and gleeful skewering of the modern American campus and its tribal culture (summary from Goodreads).

Review

This book had a lot of humorous moments and I often found myself laughing out loud at some of the over the top satire in this one. When I picked this one up, I wasn’t entirely sure what I was going to get, but was pleasantly surprised by the humor I found in the pages of this one.

As expected, this author writes with authority on the subject of campus life and doesn’t shy away from tackling big hot button issues like racism, elitism, and even more serious things like sexual assault accusations. This book has a little something for everyone who likes taking a look at some of America’s most elite campus culture.

While this was a book that I would normally not pick up and read, I was glad that I did. There was a lot of issues addresses and often sharply examined with a satirical eye. Sometimes it read a little slow, but overall it was an easy read that gave a unique look at a fascinating subject.

I noticed that one reviewer felt this book captured serious campus issues but the writing makes this a hysterical novel and I completely agree. This book is funny—hilarious even in parts—but the subjects the book tackles are anything but funny. I think that’s what makes this book unique. You can read about and think about those serious issues but at the same time find escapism and humor in the writing.

Book Info and Rating

Hardcover, 331 pages
Published August 15th 2019 by St. Martin’s Pres
ISBN 1250222370 (ISBN13: 9781250222374
Free review copy provided by publisher, St Martin’s Press, in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and in no way influenced.
Rating: 3.5 stars
Genre: contempo lit

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC. However, this review pertains to the published edition, which is what I read. Overall, I enjoyed this book and found humor in it, but towards the end I was just ready to be done. The satire was a bit on-the-nose and I got a bit bored of it.

I have long been of the belief that no one has written good satirical prose in at least 100 years, and this book did nothing to change my mind.

Though the premise is similar (a modern update, in a way), this is no Zuleika Dobson, and it suffers from the same problem that most modern satire does: No subtlety.

The best satire is generally deployed with a light touch, almost to the point where you might not realize it’s satire at all...at least initially. Campusland, unfortunately is the antithesis of subtle.

Johnston certainly writes well and shows he can be funny. But the whole thing is so over the top that it stops being humorous and reads mostly as obnoxious for most of the book.

Had Johnston employed a lighter hand, the premise might have worked well. Certainly, he’s fair in his satirizing. He’s not afraid to skewer absolutely everyone, every archetype portrayed in the book, and his criticisms aren’t wrong.

They’re simply too obvious, too extreme, and too repetitive. Satire isn’t fun when you feel like you’re been beaten over the head with it. I wanted to throw this book across the room and scream, “Dude, we GET it.” Where the author was going for wry and cutting, the book gives us absurdist and shrill.

This was a decent concept that had its moments of humor, but mostly it was just obnoxious and failed to meet the goal it set out to achieve: The clever satirization of academia and campus life.

A scathing and timely satire of the hidebound culture of academia colliding with modern progressive movements, this highly entertaining read gleefully excoriates the ouroboric parasitism that abounds on the modern campus. Sure to be thrown across the room and never finished by college administrators and instructors alike.