Author’s name: Craig Alan Williamson

Publisher: Exposure Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-84685-694-5

Craig Alan Williamson took a year studying in America, it was such an amusing and different experience to life in England. As soon as he got back he decided he was going to write a novel about a young British exchange student and his time in the U.S.A. However it took years before Craig went through with his idea but finally he grabbed his laptop and wrote A Foreign Education. When asked what was his inspiration for this comical read, Craig says it was because he’d been a student himself studying at the University of Colorado and seen how different Americans are to the English. Quite frankly, his idea was genius.

Ross Cooper is your typical kind of guy. He enjoys partying, drinking and most importantly- the young women. It is from these passions that young Ross decides to enrol himself at the University of Colorado, where underage drinking, partying and sex is rife. However amongst all the joys of American student life, comes the tricky part for Ross.  He finds that butter in American speech is pronounced budder which is strange to say the least. He discovered also to his dismay as he carried his cases up to his room that the first floor was in America, the ground floor. These little mix-ups provided many laughs for him..

As Ross begins his studying, with the ever growing thoughts of getting it together with a girl, he also takes up a place at the University Memorial Centre radio station with his new friend, Jak. Together they DJ, belting out songs to all the students who need a good cheering up when bogged down with studies.

It is not long before things become more complicated for Ross as his feelings begin to get stronger for a young student named April. She is just what Ross feels he needs, but with yet another big problem not far from the surface, will Ross ever get the girl of his dreams?

Also thrown into Ross’s life is the American exchange student, Kristen, partnered up with him by the exchange team. At first Ross is dreading to meet the mysterious Kristen with the image of some ugly, fat young girl never far from his thoughts. Nonetheless, Ross faces his new buddy and is a little surprised to see that she is “vaguely attractive”.  Getting together passes time for the pair as they argue over the pronunciation of ‘muffins’, which if you call them in English ‘buns’ is considered very crude. A thing Ross is slowly finding out. And if it isn’t that, that causes the most embarrassment it is perhaps the way most Americans seem to be so honest and open. Especially when talking about anything relating to sexual conquests.

This is a very accurate funny read that you can really compare to movies like American Pie with its crude humour and its underlying echoes of the true American/University life. It should appeal to anyone who can take the crude funniness of the book.  It’s a very light-hearted tale where everything turns out fine in the end.

Definitely brightens up a dull day

The above review was contributed by: Jessica Roberts: Jessica has been a book reviewer for a newspaper and a national women's magazine and is working on a novel..