Overview

The American public school classroom was never portrayed more honestly or realistically. A cross between Frank McCourt's Teacher Man and Justin Halpern's Sh* My Dad Says, Paul Bentley's narrative is an unvarnished look at life in a suburban high school and the utterances and mental ramblings of a non-traditional, quirky, sometimes shocking English professional. It's a memoir of sorts taking the reader through the last year in Bentley's teaching career. Organization is chronological, and the narrative is full of irreverent humor, flashbacks, sidebars, snippets, and true life dialogue. The journey is episodic like a Seinfeld show with the emphasis on the natural drama of the day-to-day with little or no attempt at segues/transitions. One never knows what's coming next and the true life vignettes come fast. The book is an amalgam of funny, and obscene, and touching, with wit and humor the dominant lasting impressions. Students, teachers, administrators, and indeed anyone who experienced public school life in the last 40 years should recognize many of their own moments here. This is the way it was, and still is in Bentley's world.

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9781456348007

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Paul Bentley is a freelance writer and is the author of the contemporary novel August Descending. He has led a diverse life ranging from serving in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne, to working in factories, digging graves, working security, coaching, and teaching for 33 years. He is married to a retired elementary teacher - his high school sweetheart - helped raise 2 grown sons and many cats. He loves food, drink, theatre, and independent movies. He is an inveterate jogger, occasional walker/hiker, and a reluctant handyman. As a longtime newspaper contributor he was voted Favorite Columnist in his area many times. He lives on a quiet, hilly, urban street where his concerns are falling leaves, drifting snow, too much seasonal water, and a lack of bikini-ed neighbors. He's not embarrassed to admit to a preoccupation with Italian foods, steak, fruit pies, good cheese, gin martinis, and the start of college football season. There is always a stack of books next to his reclining chair as well as a back scratcher, cat comb, and tv remote. If he had his life to live over, he'd wish for better cholesterol, better knees, more hair.

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