There are numerous benchmarks of achievement in high school, whether social, athletic, academic or personal growth.  School is a busy, often overwhelming journey, and carving out one’s identity may include a mix of of the above.  What is often missing, however, is one's political voice.  For many, cynicism about politics starts at the dinner table, but for others so does the realization that, no matter how bad things are in Washington DC or your own community, one dismisses politics at his or her own peril.  Politics affects our lives in subtle, sometimes seemingly invisible ways; if we’re not paying attention, it’s our fault. The Parkland, Florida shootings sparked an awareness that one’s protest, combined with others, can lead to a movement, and a movement can lead to significant change. But the effort requires courage, time, and an understanding of history. 

My new novel, The Beginner’s Guide to Winning an Election, centers on a history teacher who asks his AP students to write their term  paper on where their lives will be in ten years.  Britain, a political novice, finds her entire identity challenged in a student body election.  Once the gates of self-knowledge open, it feels both dangerous and overwhelming, but she doesn’t run from her new voice, she runs to it.  She rewrites her essay for history class, realizing  where she wants to be rather than where everyone expects her to be.  


“This novel contains political and socioeconomic messages about the current state of things and the recent future as well. Its brilliance is that it wraps complex concepts into an easy-to-follow story that is surprisingly relatable to all ages.  An incredibly engaging book." - Gerry Orz, an eleventh grade activist, author and filmmaker, attending Connection Academy in Capistrano, California.  ​

​In 2017, I began wondering how the new political norms in Washington would filter down to a  public high school election, say, in 2025.  I made middle-of-the-night notes.  Then I put those notes into  pages.  Then I made the pages into a novel.  Then I rewrote the story a half dozen times… until I began to see how it could all come true.  

I have come to view students, in public and private high schools, as inescapably important members of society. For all the painful stories of kids marginalized by bullying and shaming, or who turn to drugs or guns or suicide to escape because they see no tunnel with a light, look again at Marjory Stoneman High School.  Students are proving there is a light to follow—speaking their convictions with dispassionate eloquence—and to move toward that light means self-esteem and self-empowerment.  High schools across the country now have a precedent for being heard on crucial issues because a tired Congress, overworked media, churches, and political non-profits can’t get the job done alone.  I hope more students give themselves permission to be taken seriously.  They should insist on it, and ignore critics who view high school as a mere launch to college or adulthood.
​          ​