Alice Evelyn Davis, seventeen, has generally gotten all she wants from life but when her college of choice rejects her, problems with her best friend arise, and she faces an unexpected loss, her new-found interest in running helps get her through.

There are hundreds of books available that coach kids on writing college application essays, improving SAT scores and trying to beat the admissions system. Admissions Confidential is a definitive look at why those books don't work. Toor lifts the veil on a process that anxious parents and high school students have never had decoded before. And they may be shocked to find out: --that elite colleges spend thousands of dollars recruiting students they...