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The Idiot by Elif Batuman

This smart novel delighted me with its extraordinary dose of absurd, dry humor. Selin is a character I loved spending time with as she negotiates her first year at Harvard in 1995. Superbly written, with gorgeously crafted phrases and enough Eastern European references to justify borrowing the title from Dostoevsky, this is a book I absolutely devoured.

Kelly. R. J. Julia Booksellers, Madison