Publishers Weekly
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Scholly CEO Gray recounts the rags-to-riches story of his education and business ventures in his mixed-bag debut. Gray grew up in Alabama, raised by his mother, and was confronted with daunting obstacles when he began planning for his post–high school education. He was “without a penny of family income to help pay for college,” he writes, and found “a messed-up financial aid system that was almost impossible to navigate.” Undaunted, Gray discovered numerous scholarships for which he was eligible, and received a mind-blowing sum of $1.3 million in scholarships, which he used to attend Drexel University. While at school, he created Scholly, an app that matches students with available scholarships based on their location, GPA, interests, and other demographic information. While Gray’s personal story is packed with detail, he doesn’t quite inspire in the sections where he offers advice: he breezily declares, for example, that “when you understand the application process... you will absolutely get into the right school for you. I promise.” Gray’s optimistic conviction that there’s “a lid to every pot” may encourage some, but others will be stumped by the vague directive to turn their limitations into opportunities. This is likely to leave readers wanting. Agent: Mollie Glick, Creative Artists Agency. (Aug.)