The Foreign Student

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Invited by a prestigious university in Virginia, a young Frenchman is captivated by the gilded life of college boys, their sports teams, and the idyllic campus nestled in a paradise-like valley. It is a time of a wise America, before the upheaval of the 1960s. Soon, the young man realizes he remains a "foreign student." He crosses boundaries and transgresses taboos, often without awareness: first by having an affair with a young Black teacher, April, and then by falling in love with a whimsical and corrosive Boston heiress, Elisabeth. With a tone of clear sincerity, this coming-of-age story humorously and nostalgically revives the fragile days of adolescence when "everything was the first time." Awarded the Interallié Prize in 1986, this novel enjoyed great success in bookstores and was adapted into a film by Eva Sereny, featuring Robin Givens and Marco Hofschneider.