{"product_id":"miracle-children-race-education-and-a-true-story-of-false-promises-9781250759108","title":"Miracle Children: Race, Education, and a True Story of False Promises","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA riveting investigation into \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ea school, a scam, and a notorious \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ecollege admissions scandal \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ethat exposes the inequalities \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eand racial segregation of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eAmerican education, \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003efrom two award-winning \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times \u003c\/i\u003ejournalists\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eT.M. Landry College Prep, a small private school in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, boasted a 100 percent college acceptance rate, placing students at nearly every Ivy League university in the country. The spectacle of Landry students opening their acceptance letters to Harvard and Yale was broadcast on television and even celebrated by Michelle Obama. It became a national ritual to watch the miraculous success of these youngsters--miraculous because Breaux Bridge is one of the poorest counties in the country, ranked close to the bottom for test scores and high school graduation rates. T.M. Landry was said to be \"minting prodigies,\" and the prodigies were often black. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHow did the school do it? It didn't: It was a scam, pulled off with fake transcripts and personal essays telling fake stories of triumph over adversity. Worse, Landry's success concealed a nightmare of alleged abuse and coercion. In a yearslong investigation, Katie Benner and Erica L. Green explored the lives of the students, the school, the town, and Ivy League admissions to understand why black teens were pressured to trade in racial stereotypes of hardship for opportunity. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eGripping and illuminating, \u003ci\u003eMiracle Children \u003c\/i\u003eargues that the lesson of T.M. Landry is not that the school gamed the system but that it played by the rules--that its deceptions and abuses were the outcome of segregated schools, inequitable education, and the belief that elite colleges are the nation's last path to life-changing economic opportunity.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Katie Benner,Erica L. Green\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Metropolitan Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/13\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 272\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.00lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.40h x 6.50w x 1.20d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781250759108\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/15\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/20\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/01\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eKatie Benner \u003c\/b\u003eis an investigative reporter for \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, where she has covered the Department of Justice and Silicon Valley. She was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for coverage of workplace sexual harassment. She has worked at publications including CNN \u003ci\u003eMoney\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eFortune\u003c\/i\u003e, and Bloomberg, and is an MSNBC contributor. She has appeared on CNN, CNBC, PBS \u003ci\u003eNewsHour\u003c\/i\u003e, and the radio program \u003ci\u003eMarketplace\u003c\/i\u003e. She lives in Washington, DC. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eErica L. Green\u003c\/b\u003e, coauthor (with Wes Moore) of \u003ci\u003eFive Days: The Fiery Reckoning of an American \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eCity\u003c\/i\u003e, is an award-winning journalist at \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times \u003c\/i\u003eand was named a best education reporter in the country by the Education Writers Association in 2021. She and her team at \u003ci\u003eThe Baltimore Sun \u003c\/i\u003ewere 2016 Pulitzer Prize finalists for their coverage of the death of Freddie Gray and the riots that followed. She covers the White House and lives in Maryland.\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"booksdeli.com","offers":[{"title":"Katie Benner \/ Hardcover \/ English","offer_id":47579908309149,"sku":"9781250759108","price":47.34,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0619\/5648\/9373\/files\/img_8bbf8c3a-5f69-4cbb-a9a7-6101aaf33fb8.jpg?v=1768898605","url":"https:\/\/booksdeli.com\/products\/miracle-children-race-education-and-a-true-story-of-false-promises-9781250759108","provider":"booksdeli.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}