Review: Prom and Prejudice

Book written by Elizabeth Eulberg, published 2011.

Prom at Longbourn Academy is considered to be the most prestigious and glamorous event of the year. Dominated by the wealthy and the hypercritical, prom is the last place scholarship student Lizzie Bennet feels welcome—actually, Longbourn Academy in general is the last place Lizzie feels welcome. The only thing that makes Lizzie feel remotely at home is her kindhearted roommate, Jane Netherfield. As Jane begins a romance with the dashing and gentlemanly Charles Bingley, Lizzie is introduced to Charles’ friend, Will Darcy, who is decidedly Charles’ opposite. Prickly, disagreeable, and seemingly against Lizzie due to her lack of wealth and connections, he quickly gets a reputation in Lizzie’s book as the most pretentious snob at neighboring Pemberly Academy. Despite their disagreements, Lizzie and Darcy keep bumping into each other. With prom looming ever closer, will Lizzie and Darcy reconcile their differences, or will they stubbornly continue to get in each other’s way?

You guessed it. This is a retelling of Jane Austen’s loveable classic, Pride and Prejudice. Whether you’ve read the classic before or not, I highly recommend this fresh and modern take on the story. This novel is a very general adaptation of the original plot and themes, so if you haven’t read Pride and Prejudice before, this would be a great introduction so you have an idea of what’s going on before you tackle the harder-to-understand-one. This is another one of those quick, easy-to-follow novels that I come back to over and over again. I can almost always finish this novel in one sitting, and I, personally, think it’s great for flights and road trips.

I like this one because it’s also fairly relatable. We don’t all get to attend school with the wealthiest of the wealthy, but we’ve all known what it feels like to be an outsider in high school. It’s hard to feel like everyone is judging you for something you have no control over, and it’s even harder to feel like you have to constantly pretend it doesn’t bother you. Eulberg’s Lizzie Bennet is the kind of heroine that reminds us that even though we don’t have enough money to buy out the world, we can still have everything. We just have to work hard, be willing to sacrifice a little here and there, be open to others, and give them equal opportunity to be open with us. It won’t make life easy, but it just might make it feel more worthwhile.

This book contains underage drinking. The book also mentions one instance of sexual assault, but it’s treated very gently.

Spoilers ahead!! Yes, this also counts for those of you who have read Pride and Prejudice, but not Prom and Prejudice.

"Darcy had a wall around him, just like me. But unlike me, Darcy's feelings had changed after he got to know me. He'd built some doors into the wall, while I'd held on to my prejudices the entire time . . .

What kind of person did that make me?"

The only quibble I have with this one is that I wish there had been more of Charlotte Lucas. In Pride and Prejudice, Charlotte is certainly the character of reason. She is realistic and views pretty much everything without any sort of bias. She sees things exactly as they are. But she’s also very much like Jane in that she’s modest, patient, and kind. I feel like some of that was lost in Eulberg’s translation. Charlotte is a bit more direct here, and still nice, but it’s clear she retains some bitterness from the bullying she endured as a scholarship student. Then again, I suppose I can’t criticize too much, as two overly kind and optimistic young women may have been a little much for modern-day Lizzie to swallow. Still, it would have been nice if Charlotte had been just a little more present in the story. But that’s just me being super nit-picky.

I enjoyed the fact that Lizzie is a piano prodigy in this version. In Austen’s original, Elizabeth could play piano, but she was mediocre at best and didn’t like to play much for other people. But I felt that this detail in Eulberg’s modern adaptation was the perfect motivation for Lizzie’s character. It gives a better visual for her passion while also providing the background the character needed for being prejudiced against the wealthy. She has a firm understanding and appreciation for what it’s like to earn prestige, and, therefore, she also has a believable abhorrence for those who arrogantly inherit it.

I also really liked the fact that Darcy and Lizzie didn’t actually end up going to prom. It speaks volumes about how little money has come to matter to either one of them, and it’s a nice reminder for us readers that the right person is the most important thing in a meaningful relationship. Sappy, but true.