Tonight, I’ll be at small bookstore in Maine with New York Times reporter Katie Benner, and we’ll be discussing her book Miracle Children. Katie did this for me shortly after my book came out, and I’m delighted to get to return the favor.

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	Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more The Bluebird of Happiness Joyce Vance Mar 17   READ IN APP   Tonight, I’ll be at small bookstore in Maine with New York Times reporter Katie Benner, and we’ll be discussing her book Miracle Children. Katie did this for me shortly after my book came out, and I’m delighted to get to return the favor. Since I’m out tonight, I wanted to share a picture from my weekend, a couple of early bluebirds thinking about spring nesting despite the March snow. They were too cute! More on Katie’s book: If you haven’t already read Miracle Children, it’s the story of T.M. Landry College Prep, a small private school in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, that claimed extraordinary success: nearly 100% college acceptance rates, including placements at Ivy League universities for many Black students from modest backgrounds. The school became famous online through emotional videos of students opening acceptance letters. The investigative reporting done by Katie and her co-author, Erica L. Green, revealed that the success story was largely manufactured. The school’s founders allegedly faked transcripts, coached or fabricated personal stories about hardship, and manipulated the admissions process to get students into elite colleges. Some students also described an environment of coercion and abuse, and said they felt pressure to claim they had undergone trauma in order to appeal to admission officers. It’s a book that forces you to explore moral gray areas and makes you think about choices and compulsion—I appreciated that as a reader, I wasn’t permitted to settle upon any easy answers here. I hope the picture of the bluebird brings you happiness and the book, an opportunity to expand your world. I’ll see you tomorrow night. We’re in this together, Joyce Upgrade to paid Share You're currently a free subscriber to Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance . For the full experience, upgrade your subscription. Upgrade to paid   Like Comment Restack   © 2026 Joyce Vance 548 Market Street PMB 72296, San Francisco, CA 94104 Unsubscribe