My Last Year of Life (In School)

Book excerpt: "My Last Year of Life (in School)" could be the sentimental Goodbye, Mr. Chips or the realistic Up the Down Staircase, but it isn't. Instead, the semi-fictional My Last Year of Life (in School) is based on actual events and reveals an insider's close-up and often disturbing look at what outsiders might think is a typical suburban high school. This epistolary novel, told in a diary format, also exposes both the personal and national issues that confront American educators today. As Ethan Miller copes with school board members, students, parents, colleagues, and administrators in his own school district, he also struggles with the issues and tragedies faced by educators across the country based on news reports and website blogs from the 2012-2013 school year during his 35th and last year as an English teacher. My Last Year of Life (in School) is a poignant and enlightening story about a teacher confronting the challenges of his last year in the classroom.