Ms. Wells writes with uncompromising honesty; the feelings of all characters [in "None of the Above"] are believably expressed and the plot concerns a vital area—the pitiful state of education in our public schools. The trouble with the story is that all its people are so unsavory. That goes double for the "heroine," a dolt who is more irritating than sympathetic. Her stepmother, a snob and a pseudointellectual, wants Marcia out of the dullard class in high school and into the college-prep group with her bright daughter, Chrissie. Marcia, though she's more interested in gaudy sweaters and french fries and in daydreams of sexual exploits, finds she can fake it and make it in the advanced courses until the day when she's required to think instead of cram her head with facts. At the story's end, she has opted for a sordid future instead of college, but...