A personal narrative of the author's experiences as a teacher in the mountain region of Kentucky. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.

Could a man who never earned a master's degree tell the nation's teachers and administrators how to run their schools? Jesse Stuart, who had a life-long love of education, did just that. From Stuart's autobiographical works, J.R. LeMaster has chosen selections that demonstrate his philosophy of learning and teaching, and his philosophy of life. The selections establish a loose chronology of events in Stuart's lifelong education and describe his experience as preschooler, student, teacher, and school administrator. This multiple perspective, LeMaster suggests, is essential to understanding the process we call education—a process Jesse Stuart located in nature, believing that human beings are first and foremost natural beings and only incidentally cultural beings. That is, while we belong to an order of human beings, we also belong to a larger order—a universe of living things. In his general introduction LeMaster discusses Stuart's life and philosophy, providing the reader with a backdrop against which to study selections from Beyond Dark Hills, The Thread That Runs So True, The Year of My Rebirth, God's Oddling, Mr. Gallion's School, To Teach, To Love, and other Stuart works. Each excerpt is illumined by LeMaster's discussion of its place in Stuart's philosophy of education. Those concerned with the apparent breakdown of the American educational system will find much to consider in LeMaster's discussion of the implications of Stuart's views on education. He contends that the present crisis in our schools stems from an inadequate philosophy for living and that Jesse Stuart, who believed education was a natural development, knew as much all along.

Jesse Stuart's strong views on teaching, delinquency, and parental responibilities, as well as his sharp assessment of boards of education, are more than a novelist's imagination. Mr. Gallion's School is based on Jesse Stuart's years of personal experience as a principal and teacher.

Shan is dishonest with the storekeeper in his rural Kentucky community, but he feels better about himself after his mother forces him to put things right.

A personalized travelogue, My World chronicles the inspiring story of a poor Kentucky boy who learned how to turn the rough grist of his life into the fine art of literature. Jesse Stuart's life centered on W-Hollow, Greenup County, Kentucky, and extended to the far corners of the world. As a writer, teacher, and lecturer, he traveled to all but one of the United States and to ninety countries on six continents. As the core of Stuart's world, W-Hollow was the place of his birth and his first reaching out -- to the brown earth and the green shoots growing out of it, to the insects and animals that inhabited its wooded slopes, to the blue sky and the birds that flashed across it. From W-Hollow he went out first to Greenup High School, then to Lincoln Memorial University, then to all of Kentucky, and finally to the world. In My World, we see Stuart's expanding universe through his eyes. Through the telescoping essays, Stuart slowly extends his vision to encompass more of the world and humanity. He is conscious of the social and geographical forces that shaped and defined his life. He is also very aware of the forces that draw him home again. He saw his beloved Kentucky as many states in one. Each region -- from the east Kentucky mountains to the Jackson Purchase -- was a unique kingdom. Stuart brings Kentucky's varied scenery, its people, and their distinctive dialects and social customs to life for his readers.

Relates the adventures of an orphan named David who lives with his grandmother in the mountains of Kentucky.

Jesse Stuart is a great Kentucky novelist, short-story writer, poet, and teacher. He writes about his boyhood, school years, and experiences in college. He tells of nearly 50 years in a one-room rural schoolhouse.

INSTANT BESTSELLER For parents, teachers, and everyone who remembers being a student, an unforgettable glimpse into the inner workings of school, from a life-long educator. Children spend most of their waking hours in school, exploring boundaries, forming important relationships, and of course, learning. But as you step into the unique vantage of the principal’s office, you experience first-hand the wide range of characters, efforts, and decisions that ensure all students thrive. Kristin Phillips takes us through a school year, from the excitement of fall, through the long days of winter, and into the renewed energy that comes with spring. Through her eyes, we experience the increasingly complex education system: students with unique learning needs, teachers bringing their practice into the 21st century, and the parent-partners who have entrusted their children to the school system. Myles, a precocious five-year-old, introduces himself by swearing a blue streak on the first day of school. He finds solace in a paper box rocket ship in Phillips’s office. Rafi, a grade 8 boy oozing with attitude, makes a very uncool choice to lunch with the principal. And Harriet, a struggling teacher, is oblivious to the fact her students are bored to tears. Throughout the story, Phillips develops caring relationships with the people who need her the most, as she works with colleagues to create an environment where everyone succeeds. But principals are people, too, and Phillips also recounts the demands on her as a single mother with three teenagers, one of whom suffers from significant mental health issues. As an educator, she tries to help students coping with similar problems and reveals a heartfelt story of dealing with the system, from both sides. With honesty and compassion, Phillips gives a human face to the joys of school, and the very real difficulties educators work to overcome, one year and one student at a time.