The Fall of Rome

Another amazing book by Southgate. I really tried to drag this out for two reasons - 1 I didn't want it to end, all the characters were so compelling and 2 I was very fearful of a tragic end. I love how Southgate can tell stories from multiple points of view and you feel such empathy for each and every one of them, you want the best possible outcome for each character. I should have known by the title whose outcome would be the saddest. Can't wait to see what she writes next.

Beautiful, serene and sad, think Dead Poets Society meets Go Tell it on the Mountain. A first novel which is remarkable. If you have a thing for novels/movies about inspirational teachers but also get the difficulties of teaching and working in education itself, I cannot recommend this book enough.

Alternating chapters are told in the voice of (1) a longtime African American teacher of classics at an elite New England prep school for boys; (2) a new English teacher at the school, recently divorced and attracted to (1), who previously taught for many years at an innter city school in Cleveland; and (3) (told in third-person for some reason) a 14-year-old African American boy from Brooklyn who enrolls at the mostly white school after his promising older brother is killed in a senseless shooting in their neighborhood. It's a very nuanced protrayal of racial issues in an intimate setting. Despite the almost trite prep school setting (something the author & her characters are aware of), it feels fresh & authentic.

The Fall of Rome, by Martha Southgate, is a must-read for all teenagers and teachers. Jerome Washington is an African American Latin teacher at Chelsea; an all boys boarding school that is mainly Caucasian.
Rashid Bryson, from New York City, is one of the few African American students at Chelsea. He registers for Latin class thinking Mr. Washington would be his ally. Rashid soon learns that the challenges at this school might be too much to bear, and that race is unfortunately a factor in how some people judge him, even Mr. Washington.
This novel challenges individuals to look honestly at their beliefs about race and class and encourages teachers to think twice before they judge a student.