in which our hero, the teacher, grabs a bullhorn and a soapbox

Anyone with any level of concern for the American public school system--in particular, its political machinations--should read Silent No More: Voices of Courage in American Schools. When school boards turn teachers into political pawns, when principals run roughshod over the First Amendment, when at-risk students are kicked out of school and their transcript notes "lack of interest"--these are a few of the bile-raising stories, from the trenches, of some of America's finest. Best about the volume: it's written by the teachers themselves.

Read it. Now.