AcaPolitics: A Novel About College A Cappella

At Brighton University, a cappella is a serious business; there are six different singing groups, and the competition between them to recruit new talent every year is fierce. When the student government announces that funding restrictions will necessitate a cutback in funds, the rivalry becomes even more fierce: for one of the groups, this year will be their last. Freshman Ben Jensen soon finds himself caught up in a maelstrom of ‘acadrama.’ He gets recruited to sing with the Chorderoys, but the president of the Harmoniums has other plans, both for him in particular and for using her singing to power a future musical career. The next year will be a game of survival and sabotage between the Chorderoys and the Harmoniums, as well as the other campus a cappella groups: the Gobfellas, a gang of immature frat boys; the Notabelles, the only all-female group; the loveable geek guys of the Dinos; and La*chaim, a Jewish group.

At first glance, AcaPolitics seems like it would appeal to a very niche audience. However, a talented author like Harrison proves that good writing can make any subject attractive to the mainstream. This novel is surprisingly engrossing; intriguing and multifaceted characters like Ben, Dani, Caroline, and Taylor grab your interest from the first few pages and keep you firmly engaged throughout the different stages in this unexpectedly cutthroat competition. The focus of the story is clearly and unwaveringly a cappella singing, and consequently, many other aspects of Ben’s first year of college fade into the background, but this is a good thing; the single-mindedness of the author here reflects the intense focus of the singers on their individual group’s performances. This novel is a fantastic offering from a talented new author. And as AcaPolitics is the first in a series, many readers will find themselves eagerly anticipating the continuation of this story.