TEACHER MAN

FRANK MCCOURT

Synopsis from Goodreads: Nearly a decade ago Frank McCourt became an unlikely star when, at the age of sixty-six, he burst onto the literary scene with Angela's Ashes, the Pulitzer Prize -- winning memoir of his childhood in Limerick, Ireland. Then came 'Tis, his glorious account of his early years in New York. Now, here at last, is McCourt's long-awaited book about how his thirty-year teaching career shaped his second act as a writer. Teacher Man is also an urgent tribute to teachers everywhere. In bold and spirited prose featuring his irreverent wit and heartbreaking honesty, McCourt records the trials, triumphs and surprises he faces in public high schools around New York City. His methods anything but conventional, McCourt creates a lasting impact on his students through imaginative assignments (he instructs one class to write "An Excuse Note from Adam or Eve to God"), singalongs (featuring recipe ingredients as lyrics), and field trips (imagine taking twenty-nine rowdy girls to a movie in Times Square!). McCourt struggles to find his way in the classroom and spends his evenings drinking with writers and dreaming of one day putting his own story to paper. Teacher Man shows McCourt developing his unparalleled ability to tell a great story as, five days a week, five periods per day, he works to gain the attention and respect of unruly, hormonally charged or indifferent adolescents. McCourt's rocky marriage, his failed attempt to get a Ph.D. at Trinity College, Dublin, and his repeated firings due to his propensity to talk back to his superiors ironically lead him to New York's most prestigious school, Stuyvesant High School, where he finally finds a place and a voice. "Doggedness," he says, is "not as glamorous as ambition or talent or intellect or charm, but still the one thing that got me through the days and nights." For McCourt, storytelling itself is the source of salvation, and in Teacher Man the journey to redemption -- and literary fame -- is an exhilarating adventure.

Stats for my copy: Hardback, Scribner, 2005.

How acquired: Via Book Mooch.

My thoughts:  I read ANGELA'S ASHES in 2007, after which I wrote in my journal entry on BookCrossing:

Very depressing. At first I had trouble too because I just couldn't fathom how the author could remember in such detail things that happened when he was 3 and 4 years of age. But then I began reading with the mindset that it I was reading fiction with a first-person narrator and was able to concentrate on the story. Then when the author was "ten going on eleven" I began to get really sucked in and was captivated until the end.

Then I read 'TIS in 2010:

I really enjoy McCourt's writing, as if he's sitting next to you weaving a tale for you. I liked this book even more than Angela's Ashes. Solid story of a young Irish immigrant intent on getting an education and becoming a teacher, despite all the odds against him - including very little family/friend moral support as he's constantly told he should stick to physical labor jobs that pay better.

TEACHER MAN then languished in my TBR pile until a couple of days ago, when I finally picked it up to read. I don't know why I waited so long, but I really enjoyed it. Teaching has got to be one of the hardest jobs around, and I admire anyone brave enough to make a career of it. Mr. McCourt writes very honestly about his feelings of inadequacy, constantly wondering how to get a handle on the job and expecting to be fired for being a fraud. His methods were unusual, but he was able to connect with kids and get their attention.

The writing flows, sometimes almost in a stream of consciousness style, as Mr. McCourt relates incidents, anecdotes and thoughts and feelings. I read this book in two days, something I've not done with a book in a long time. Partly because I had some time what with our office being closed due to an ice storm, but mostly because the writing and the narration just pulled me in and I became unaware of time passing. The end came all too soon. 

When Calls the Heart (Canadian West, Book 1)

JANETTE OKE

Synopsis from back of book: Nothing in her cultured East Coast upbringing prepared Elizabeth for a teaching position on the Canadian frontier. Yet, despite the constant hardships, she loves the children in her care. Determined to the do the best job she can and fighting to surviv the harsh land, Elizabeth is surprised to find her heart softening towards a certain member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Stats for my copy: Mass market paperback, published by Bethany Hose, 1983.

How acquired: Bought.

First line: It came as a surprise to me.

My thoughts: I think this is the first book I've read by Janette Oke, and I was a little surprised initially by the writing style, which almost seems aimed at a young adult audience. Nothing wrong with YA of course, I just wasn't expecting it. And I obviously read too many romance novels, because I kept waiting and waiting for the hero to make his appearance. While our heroine sees him once at a distance, talking to her brother, earlier in the book, she doesn't actually meet him until page 143 – literally halfway through the 284 page book.

Elizabeth has grown up in a well to do family, enjoying the comforts of big city living. Being a very independent sort of girl, she has pursued a teaching career, and has no thoughts of or desire to marry and settle into the life of a housewife. When her oldest brother, living in the rugged untamed west, writes to their mother about the opportunities available for women and the need for schoolteachers, and asking if Elizabeth would like to come out, she at first is horrified at the prospect, but eventually agrees.

Upon her arrival, after being reintroduced to her brother, whom she hasn't seen in years, and meeting his wife, she quickly lets them know that she is here to teach only:

“...Had I been interested in matrimony, I could have stayed in the East and found an acceptable spouse. Julie, who by the way is our family expert on the subject, assures me that the men of the West are adventurers – undependable, rough, and rowdy. I don't know if her research is totally reliable, but I have no intention of finding out...”

Unfortunately, the school superintendent, Mr. Higgins, who will decide at what school to place her, takes an immediate liking to her and seems to assume that she would be more than happy to forgo teaching and marry him instead. She politely sets him straight, and he gets his revenge by placing her at a school 100 miles away from her family, in a rugged small town that has been unable to attract a teacher, ever. And thus her real adventures begin.

The story is in first person POV, with Elizabeth being a sweet and reliable narrator. She loves teaching, loves getting to know the children and their family, along with other members of the community. Wynn Delaney holds a fascination for her that she finds unexpected and disconcerting. She's not perfect, she makes some mistakes and jumps to some conclusions, though she hurts herself more than anyone else in the process. Her battle with the mice who inhabit the little house she is provided was particularly amusing.

Overall a very engaging and enjoyable read. Knowing this is the first book in a series, I was left worrying and guessing practically up to the last few pages as to how it would end, but was more than satisfied. 

Comanche Heart (Comanche, Book 2)

Catherine Anderson

Synopsis: Years ago, Amy Masters escaped the fury of the Texas plains for a new life as a teacher in the golden hills of Oregon, where she has found contentment – if not happiness. Then, out of the shadows, comes Swift Antelope, the Comanche warrior to whom she once pledged her heart when she was no more than a girl.

Claiming that he has given up his violent ways as a gunslinger, Swift has arrived to take the woman he feels is rightfully his – the woman who once swore to honor a sacred and unbreakable pact. But Amy's brutal past has made it impossible for her to trust any man – even if it's the bold warrior who has haunted her dreams, the only man she ever loved, the Comanche heart she can't live without.

First line: Like a forlorn soul, the wind whistled and moaned as it funneled around Swift Antelope, whipping his hair across his face so that he saw the lonely grave through a shifting veil of black.

Stats for my copy: Mass market paperback, published by Signet, an imprint of New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 2009; 419 pages; borrowed from the library.

My thoughts: As much as I loved COMANCHE MOON practically from the first page, this sequel took a little longer to draw me in and captivate me. Nearly a month later, I still vividly remember the first book, and Hunter and Loretta still resonate with me, so this second book had a lot to live up to.

Swift Antelope spent many years fighting in the war between the white men and his People, while Amy waited at home with her mother and stepfather for him to come for her. At 19, she left Texas and traveled to Oregon, to settle in Wolf's Landing with Loretta, Hunter, and their two children. Here, she has her own home, and a job she loves as a schoolteacher. When she's not at school or with her family, she is safely inside her little house, with the bolts drawn. She rarely socializes, and politely spurns the attention of any man who shows an interest in her. And she still has nightmares about the two weeks with the comancheros who kidnapped her when she was twelve.

After the fighting ended, Swift went to the farm for Amy, only to be told by her stepfather that she had died. Swift spent the next three years riding with Mexican bandits, going by the surname of Lopez, and earning a reputation as a notorious gunslinger. Weary of this life, he travels to Oregon to reconnect with Hunter and try to find a peaceful life, to the shocking realization that Amy is still alive, and is terrified of him and wants nothing to do with him. But they were betrothed under Comanche custom, and he is determined to hold her to that promise.

There is not nearly as much violence and heartbreak in this book as in the first one. Swift has to find a way past Amy's mental barriers, and that is in essence what the story. There were times when I did not agree with his methods and mentally smacked him on the arm and told him to leave her be, and then his reasoning would be revealed and I would have to apologize for doubting him and say carry on.

The angst is sky high as the emotional battle lines are drawn and crossed and erased and drawn again. There is a hilarious scene with Amy and Swift trying to catch a chicken, Loretta finally intervening and showing them how it's done, and then none of them having the heart to wring it’s neck. After which Amy asks Swift:

“I – do you – if you were a fellow, what would you like? Chicken or ham?”

Swift arched an eyebrow. “If I were a fellow?”

She blushed. “Well, of course, you're a fellow, Swift. I meant a fellow eating dinner at a social. Would you want chicken or ham?”

“Either one, I guess. Unless, of course, I had to kill the chicken. Then I'd lean real heavy toward ham.” (pg 191)

And while I'm quoting passages, another I liked:

“If you get the boot, I'll bring you more bread and butter than you can eat. You'll get fat eating it all. And I won't tell you what to do and when to do it, I promise. Now, sit down. I didn't buy your basket to fight. Do you like my shirt?”

She studied him for a moment, unhappily aware that he vowed not to order her around, then commanded her to sit, all in the same breath. (pg 200)

While COMANCHE HEART isn't as exciting as COMANCHE MOON, once I got pulled in there were some edge of my seat turning the pages can't put it down nights where I stayed up past my bedtime to read. And that's always the mark of a good book.