Name: Kendall McClain's review of High School by Sara Quin
Item: High School
Rating: 5
Author: Kendall McClain

Sara Quin

Tegan Quin

From the iconic musicians Tegan and Sara comes a memoir about high school, detailing their first loves and first songs in a compelling look back at their humble beginnings High School is the revelatory and unique coming-of-age story of Sara and Tegan Quin, identical twins from Calgary, Alberta, who grew up at the height of grunge and rave culture in the nineties, well before they became the celebrated musicians and global LGBTQ icons we know today. While grappling with their identity and sexuality, often alone, they also faced academic meltdown, their parents’ divorce, and the looming pressure of what might come after high school. Written in alternating chapters from both Tegan's and Sara’s points of view, the book is a raw account of the drugs, alcohol, love, music, and friendship they explored in their formative years. A transcendent story of first loves and first songs, High School captures the tangle of discordant and parallel memories of two sisters who grew up in distinct ways even as they lived just down the hall from each another. This is the origin story of Tegan and Sara.

High School

sage jaël <3

Kendall McClain

Re-reading this almost exactly a year after I first read it! So very emotional for me thinking back to where I was then compared to now regarding the content of this book! I love this book very much and I adore Tegan and Sara

First loves, first songs, and the drugs and reckless high school exploits that fueled them—meet music icons Tegan and Sara as you’ve never known them before in this intimate and raw account of their formative years. High School is the revelatory and unique coming-of-age story of Sara and Tegan Quin, identical twins from Calgary, Alberta, growing up in the height of grunge and rave culture in the 90s, well before they became the celebrated musicians and global LGBTQ icons we know today. While grappling with their identity and sexuality, often alone, they also faced academic meltdown, their parents’ divorce, and the looming pressure of what might come after high school. Written in alternating chapters from both Tegan’s point of view and Sara’s, the book is a raw account of the drugs, alcohol, love, music, and friendships they explored in their formative years. A transcendent story of first loves and first songs, it captures the tangle of discordant and parallel memories of two sisters who grew up in distinct ways even as they lived just down the hall from one another. This is the origin story of Tegan and Sara.

Briar's Reviews

High School by Sara Quin and Tegan Quin is a wonderful biography all about the famous musicians' high school years.

This was a book that really had me hooked despite being a genre I don't jump into too often. I couldn't believe how enchanting and engaging it was! The pictures, the events, the relatable nature... it was all just so good together. Sara and Tegan not only have a talent with telling their story through music, they have the writing bug too.

I've known about Tegan and Sara but have never been a "super fan". I've listened to the odd song and known about some of the awards they've won. They are famous Canadians, so obviously as a Canadian myself I've heard of them. This book has made me realize I want to listen to their music a lot more. They are relatable, inspirational and motivational - and they were once just normal girls living their best lives. It's a relatable and down to earth story about some of the insanity of high school years. 

To top it all off, they are LGTBQ+ advocates. They are apart of the community and do a lot of good work for it. They are inspirational figures and have a magical way with their words. Their struggles and journey are really something worth reading about. The high school angst, drugs, the changes and discovery in their sexuality, the changing family dynamics and the beginnings in the music industry are something really cool to read about! It felt like these guys could literally be my next door neighbours or be my buddies. There's also some comedic moments, amazing lines and crazy goofs that make this book transcend to another level of awesome. The on the spot excuses for what they were doing instead of taking drugs or having a little too much fun with their significant others had me chuckling.

Overall, this book was a lovely journey and a great read. I highly recommend it for fans of Tegan and Sara or people just seeking an interesting biography.

Four out of five stars.

I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

enormously endearing. i highly recommend listening to the audiobook. hearing their voices alternate reading each chapter is very sweet, but more than that, they include their very first tape demos throughout the book from when they were finding their voices and learning how to write songs in high school, and it is incredibly dear and beautiful.

lots of drugs and heartbreak and friendship and sexuality discovery. really precious, earnest, open-minded and open-hearted high school humans. i now adore these girls.

Kat Albanese

enormously endearing. i highly recommend listening to the audiobook. hearing their voices alternate reading each chapter is very sweet, but more than that, they include their very first tape demos throughout the book from when they were finding their voices and learning how to write songs in high school, and it is incredibly dear and beautiful.

lots of drugs and heartbreak and friendship and sexuality discovery. really precious, earnest, open-minded and open-hearted high school humans. i now adore these girls.

Fraser Simons

Tegan and Sara chronicle their high school years, primarily centering how they came to their music, but surprisingly, though maybe it shouldn’t be, really digging deep about their queer journeys. Showcasing the homophobia of their friends and parents and teachers, and their struggle to understand who they were coming into. It feels genuine and sometimes pretty raw—especially when they’re so open about the chasms and rifts between one another. They fought a lot and took drugs and sometimes treated their parents and others with a kind of viciousness reserved for the ignorance teenagers sometimes embody. This context of why that all was occurring is really impactful. 

On top of that, the narration by both is fantastic, there are old tape tracks peppered in throughout, and there’s a 20 minute interview at the end too. And it seems like they may have written their chapters separately and then coalesced a book from it, and that lends it a kind of specificity and unique expression I haven’t encountered in other memoirs. Really, stand out great-fantastic.

Jesse

** spoiler alert **
           I had just turned 17 when I first discovered Tegan and Sara. I was mostly in the closet, heartbroken from my first very serious girlfriend who broke up with me over the summer and feeling lost at college. Then I spent all night listening to their discography and live performances. I didn't feel so alone anymore.

This book seems so familiar in a sense. These are stories anyone who has watched live videos of them on YouTube could recall. It feels like I'm not just walking in their memories, but my own. The story about their mum finding weed in the basement and suggesting they all smoke it together made me empathetically cringe but also feel nostalgic as I remember hearing that story for the first time via YouTube at stupid o'clock in the morning about 6 years ago.

You don't have to be a fan to enjoy this book; it lets you live the life of two queer gals in the 90s who just want to do drugs and make music. The lessons and their experiences they share will leave a mark on any reader and honestly, I will read this book over and over again.

NEW YORK TIMES AND NATIONAL BESTSELLER First loves, first songs, and the drugs and reckless high school exploits that fueled them—meet music icons Tegan and Sara as you’ve never known them before in this intimate and raw account of their formative years. High School is the revelatory and unique coming-of-age story of Sara and Tegan Quin, identical twins from Calgary, Alberta, growing up in the height of grunge and rave culture in the ’90s, well before they became the celebrated musicians and global LGBTQ icons we know today. While grappling with their identity and sexuality, often alone, they also faced academic meltdown, their parents’ divorce, and the looming pressure of what might come after high school. Written in alternating chapters from both Tegan’s point of view and Sara’s, the book is a raw account of the drugs, alcohol, love, music, and friendships they explored in their formative years. A transcendent story of first loves and first songs, it captures the tangle of discordant and parallel memories of two sisters who grew up in distinct ways even as they lived just down the hall from one another. This is the origin story of Tegan and Sara.

Erin 

Tegan & Sara are one of my favourite musical groups, and the fact that they grew up in the same city I’ve called home for the last seven years is only like 35% of the reason. I usually roll my eyes when I hear that yet another musical artist is writing a memoir, but I was so excited for this one that I let it slide. And it’s SO GOOD – but probably for a special reason that not everyone can relate to. It’s so cool to listen to stories that reference places or locations that you pass every day on your way to work, or know people who lived in the same neighborhoods, or went to the same high schools. It doesn’t happen very often here, and Tegan and Sara are a city-wide treasure because of it. I try to see them perform here every time they are on tour because it feels so special to welcome them home. I listened to the audiobook for this one, and honestly it’s even better than I think the book alone would be – there wouldn’t be any musical interludes, for example. It’s a bit of a long one, but so worth it.

sage jaël <3 &
High School by Sara Quin

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sage jaël <3 &High School by Sara Quin

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sage jaël <3 &
High School by Sara Quin