GETTING IN records the route taken by an ingenious applicant, Tapioca Strangeways of Rising Gorge, Vermont, in order to gain admission to highly selective Riddle University. It begins when Tapioca receives permission from Dean Dorman, a young admissions officer at Riddle, to write an Admissions essay that's far longer than the one required of all the other applicants. And that essay goes on for ten autobiographical chapters, each of which charmingly and modestly presents one or more facets of Tapioca's depth, unique well-roundedness and overall worth to a university like Riddle. Interrupting the flow of these chapters are the letters that fly back and forth between Rising Gorge and South Riddle, MA. In them, Tapioca's plan can be seen taking shape. The last one from Riddle is, of course, the treasured acceptance letter.