Tom Perrotta

"Tracy Flick is a hardworking assistant principal at a public high school in suburban New Jersey. Still ambitious but feeling a little stuck and underappreciated in midlife, Tracy gets a jolt of good news when the longtime principal, Jack Weede, abruptly announces his retirement, creating a rare opportunity for Tracy to ascend to the top job. Energized by the prospect of her long-overdue promotion, Tracy throws herself into her work with renewed zeal,...

The citizens of Mapleton are confused and frightened following the mysterious disappearance of hundreds of people from their community. Had the Rapture happened and they had been left behind? Kevin Garvey, the mayor, is trying to speed up the healing process, return a sense of hope, and help them get past their fears, while trying to hold his own family together.

Stonewood Heights is the perfect place to raise children: it's got good schools, solid values and a healthy real estate market. Parents in the town are involved in their children's lives, and often in other children's lives, too―coaching sports, driving carpool, focusing on enriching experiences. Ruth Ramsey is the high school human sexuality teacher whose openness is not appreciated by all her students―or their parents. Her daughter's soccer...