Julie Schumacher

Hilarious yet sobering view of the world of secondary education, as told in a series of letters of recommendation by an English professor from a small liberal arts college. I’ve never come across this form of storytelling, and it works. I’ve known for some time that certain institutions have a culture that is all their own, and universities are no exception. Schumacher, herself a college professor, reaches back into her experience to illuminate the craziness of her world, and writes the LOR that I’m sure most academics would have loved to write themselves, but of course couldn’t. The book specifically addresses the dying liberal arts in the era of STEM majors, and the scant options for, in particular, English majors (often having to accept jobs well below their skill sets). There is a tragic element to the book, as the author of the LORs, Jason Fitger, tries to promote his last mentee. This book is so well written - it’s compulsively readable - and should be required reading for anyone teaching at the college level.… (more)

I was very disappointed in this highly recommended book about an unhappy person who is forced to take 11 college students to England for a short trip. The very poor writings (grammar, punctuation, etc) were presented and supposed to be witty and funny. I found it very sad that that writing emanated from supposedly educated people. The politics of the college were also presented as funny, but as a person who has experienced the same treatment, mainly at a community college, I did not find them humorous. Many people are injured by the systems in place in this country, and laughing at them seves no one. I gave it a 2.5 because I would help some readers would see the problems and work to change them, as I did when I was employed.… (more)