High School

4.8 | 977 ratings

Price: 17.71

Last update: 09-24-2024

About this item

"Tegan and Sara Quin’s joint memoir is perfect in audiobook form.... Knowing and loving Tegan and Sara the musicians will obviously make this listen extra special, but it’s by no means a prerequisite to entry. High School, very literally, is for everyone." (Paste, best audiobooks of 2019)

This program is read by the authors and features bonus interviews and rough recordings of Tegan and Sara's first songs, recorded on cassette tapes in the late '90s, and rediscovered 20 years later while writing High School.

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 '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 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.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

Heidi Orion

This made me love the band even more

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2019

When I first purchased ‘High School’, by Sara Quin & Tegan Quin, I was eager to read it, but as a HUGE Tegan and Sara fan, I was afraid my reception of it would be biased. But as I started turning the pages, I quickly discovered that it’s really f*cking good, no bias needed. Its the true tale of a set of identical twins, in high school in the 90’s, who are just trying to figure it out. I love that it alternates each twin per chapter. This made it more fun to read, reducing any risk of monotony. Both authors are really funny, insightful, & deeply emotional. As the reader, I marveled in the nostalgia & I could easily relate to so many of their teenage antics, as well as complicated feelings. The book is honest & raw. Sex, drugs, rock & roll. And final exams. The relationship between the sisters is the constant thread looping it all together, especially as their early music career sets sail. I laughed. I cried. I have even more respect for my favorite band now. I absolutely recommend this book.

Claire

I loved it!

Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2022

This is a really good book. I'd seen reviews that said it had been written like a journal or diary and I have to disagree. It was well written. I've been a fan of Tegan and Sara for years, and part of what made me a fan beyond their music was their dynamic together as siblings, as twins. Their onstage banter and humor is great and it was reflected well in this book. Definitely recommend to all fans of them, but people who are unaware of their music but enjoy teen stories would like this too.

A reader

A story so many of us can relate to...

Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2019

Thank you to Tegan and Sara for writing such an honest, vulnerable, and beautiful chronicle of their teenage years. I was already a huge fan but this book made me somehow love them even more. The beauty of this book is how easy it is to relate your own story to theirs. They touch on first love, divorce, sibling love and war, navigating friendships, and so much more. This book will bring you back to your own teenage years, no matter how long ago they were. If you are new to Tegan and Sara, you’re about to discover a brilliant band whose music will stick with you. They are funny, smart, generous, and very talented and we’re lucky that they share that talent with us.

Gabriella Budonaro

Just ok

Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2020

It’s interesting. But it seems slow. Not to much excitement. Haven’t read the entire book yet, because I started to get bored. But I LOVE TEAGAN AND SARA!

Emily

I loved this book

Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2024

Literally loved it. It’s one of those books I’m positive will stick with me for the rest of my life. I’m not much younger than Tegan and Sara, so their experiences of life as gay teenagers in the 90s hit close to home. My heart ached for them. I just wanted to hug their teenage selves. I could relate to the sadness and confusion and shame they felt. The dreaded possibility of being a *whisper* lesbian…and the terror of being found out. Their openness and honesty helped me to understand things in myself that I never had before, as if something in me shifted and I’m a little more myself than I was before reading it. If that makes sense. What I found so inspiring about their stories is not that they became world-famous rock stars, which they did, but that they became themselves. I wish more people would read this book. On a side note, I started listening to their music this month for the first time (20 years late to the party, I know), and I currently have their songs on repeat when I run each day.

A. Speer

Love them!

Reviewed in the United States on August 1, 2024

Great read! If you weren’t a fan already you will be after this!

rumkat

Brilliant!

Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2019

I first heard of Tegan and Sara when I saw them perform on David Letterman. I don't even remember when that was but when they started to sing, I got chills. I have since seen them live, first in a tiny club on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and then years later at Madison Square Garden. Every time is a thrill ... and this book was a joy to read. I hated to finish it because I wanted to know more. Tegan and Sara are so talented; it doesn't matter whether they're writing songs or books.

The honesty and frankness they bring to the book as they lay bare their individual path to identifying and ultimately accepting their sexuality is eye-opening for someone who hasn't experienced it. You feel the indecision, exploration and heartbreak they're each going through and root for them all along the way.

It's exhilarating to learn about their shared passion for music and how they achieved their success while remaining true to themselves. I've been out of high school for 50 years but I loved this book.

Nessie

Brilliance in a book

Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2019

I know it’s shameful to admit but I don’t usually read. I’ve been reading another book for almost one year now, that’s how bad it is. But when High School came out, I had to immediately read it. It’s been one month and I’m almost done with the book, that tells you how good it is. Tegan and Sara wrote the book in such a charming yet truthful way. It is nice to get a glimpse of their childhood and also relate to some of their coming of age stories, especially for a queer audience. This book is fantastic and I highly recommend it.

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