Compelling

I had been reading this, and enjoying it (while reading other books as well), and towards the end, was so compelled to finish it, that I woke up at 3 a.m,, and couldn't bear to stop reading.  I was so terribly worried about choices some of the characters were making, that I absolutely couldn't go back to sleep.

A magnet public school for the gifted comes to Colorado. 4 women, and their families are deeply affected by this.  The parents motives, the children's actions and desires, are well developed. I enjoyed each of the parents, despite some dubious choices they made. 

The author portrays parental angst, and desire for their kids' success well.  The dialogue is quite good, as is some of the social commentary.  You will find yourself rooting for certain characters, and yelling at others.  The good, bad, beautiful, and ugly of each person is beautifully told.