The Thread That Runs So True

by Jesse Stuart

First published in 1949, Jesse Stuart's now classic personal account of his 20 years of teaching in the mountain region of Kentucky has enchanted & inspired generations of students & teachers. With eloquence & wit, Stuart traces his 20 year career in education, which began, when he was only seventeen years old, with teaching grades 1 through 8 in a one-room schoolhouse. Before long Stuart was on a path that made him principal & finally superintendent of city & county schools. The road was not smooth, however, & Stuart faced many challenges, from students who were considerably older- & bigger- than he to well-meaning but distrustful parents, uncooperative administrators, & most daunting, his own fear of failure. Through it all, Stuart never lost his abiding faith in the power of education. A graceful ode to what he considered the greatest profession there is, Jesse Stuart's The Thread That Runs So True is timeless proof that good teaching is forever and the teacher is immortal.

Genres: Memoir, Nonfiction, Biography, Education, History, Teaching, Autobiography

304 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 1949

About the author

Jesse Hilton Stuart was an American writer known for writing short stories, poetry, and novels about Southern Appalachia. Born and raised in Greenup County, Kentucky, Stuart relied heavily on the rural locale of Northeastern Kentucky for his writings. Stuart was named the Poet Laureate of Kentucky in 1954. He died at Jo-Lin nursing home in Ironton, Ohio, which is near his boyhood home.

Reviews

[Camie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I reread this book for a Bookclub this month. I always love books of simpler times. Jesse Stuart who during the 1920's-1930's was a very young teacher in a rural one room school with 8 grades of students whose families were mostly tobacco farmers and required them for farm chores some parts of the year, then a high school teacher with 14 students who were almost as smart as him and not much younger, the Supervisor of Schools in Kentucky in difficult financial times, and finally a High school principal who invited rural teachers to come back to school and finish their degrees. It's a pretty inspiring biography of a time when lots of sacrifices were made to be both a teacher and student many of whom really did the things we hear about in the old time stories like working for $60 a month or walking 7 miles to school, barefoot, in the snow. 3.5 stars

[Diane Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice little piece of Americana. Jesse Stuart was a schoolteacher in the 1920's and 1930's in Kentucky. Pay was low, conditions were hard, but his love of teaching shines through, as does his rural students determination to get some kind of education. These were the days when 14 year olds could still be in 1st grade, corporal punishment was the norm, and you could get a $100 loan from the bank with no collateral except your name and reputation. A lot of his behavior would land him in jail in today's world, but it was a different time.
I had a hard time with his being a teacher at 16, a high school principal at 23, and a superintendent at 24, but as I said, it was a different time. People grew up faster then. Teachers should find this book fascinating.

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dignity. That's the word that kept coming to mind while reading this memoir of writer Jesse Stuart's hardships during his youthful career as a Kentucky school teacher and administrator, back in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. Like many of his colleagues at the time, he was severely underpaid -- often not paid at all -- under-clothed, under-fed, in constant debt, unable to find transport to ply his avocation -- except walking, or, if lucky, horseback riding-- and often found himself the target of random and very real violence and explicit threats by the suspicious mountain locals. Bloody fights with students, fights with parents of students, fights with factions caught up in passionate feuds over just about anything, attacks by jealous suitors of the local women and the like, were all too common to the intrepid teacher who dared to venture education in the poorest part of the nation. Only Arkansas was worse, prompting a local saying that helped to salve the embarrassment: "Thank God for Arkansas."

The Thread that Runs So True, published in 1949, is now a very old book. It was once a very well-known American classic, read by generations of educators, but now it might, in some ways, come off as a quaint relic. Stuart's solution of having students duke it out to solve problems, or himself clotting unruly kids with the occasional tackle or uppercut to the chin, would not go down too well in the rulebook of teaching today. But, there's still very much historically of importance in the book, as well as being a reminder that -- even now -- teachers are the most shit-on and underpaid members of our society. Stuart's plea for understanding about the importance of teachers and teaching in this book is often passionate, and often deeply moving.

Thanks to Stuart and dedicated contemporaries, education in the state did improve, and teachers to this day in the state have been unsung heroes. In the last election cycle, the teachers were true heroes, helping oust a pernicious and vindictive Republican Governor (a Bible-thumping self-righteous jerk named Matt Bevin) who tried to undermine their rights and benefits by sneaking anti-public-education legislation -- characteristically cynically -- into a sewage bill. To say that riled up the teachers of this state would be a great understatement. They organized and got his ass out, and this in a heavily Red Trump state.

Even back when Stuart wrote this book, he had an answer for today:

"Hypocritical, shortsighted, ignorant politicians, living in the middle of the twentieth century, allowing schools to remain closed for lack of appropriations, perpetrators of continued ignorance and future crime... Tax us. Tax us to death to pay our teachers. Let them work upon immortal minds to brighten them all to eternity. We educate our people or we perish."

The book still has great value, at least philosophically, for today, often told in beautiful, simple, folksy language. Stuart's mastery of describing places and people are on point. And, he gets the girl in the end. Hope that's not a spoiler.

This may no longer be an essential book, but it's still worthy. I was very pleased to have finally read it, being a native Kentuckian, where Stuart is still considered one of our finest authors

EG-KR@KY 2021

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book for so many reasons. I personally met Jesse Stuart is one of them, but I had read it before I met him, and my brother starred in the high school play version of it when he was a junior and I was a freshman in high school. Brother was not the Jesse Stuart character but he had a big part, and little sister was impressed.

I wanted to be a librarian, not a teacher by then, but education and the love of reading is a universal goal between the two professions.

After meeting Mr. Stuart I read it again. I own lots of his books and would not trade any of them. The Jesse Stuart Foundation in Kentucky will sell you a reprint, but I am keeping my old ones!!!

The kind of caring teacher, principal and all around educator he was, I encountered many times in my life, but I also encountered those who should never have been put in front of a classroom. Forget them, although they exist...if every child could run into 2 or 3 Jesse Stuart type teachers in his educational career, he/she would be inspired enough to get past the others.

I give thanks now for my Elementary School Princpal, Mr. Carroll, who was an uncle to Kentucky's former governor Julian Carroll. He was that kind of educator. And to Mrs. Virgie Kirk, my elementary school librarian, who is the reason I am a librarian today. And to Mr. and Mrs. Newton, a couple who seemed elderly to me at the time, who brought kindness and joy to school. Mr. Newton was tall and stately, and little Mrs. Newton, got our second grade class a cardboard store with play money to learn math with - in 1960 - that was a big expense for a teacher to spend from her own pocket. Oh how we loved to play store. My first grade teacher, Miss Thompson, who later became Mrs. Guest, read out loud every day after lunch a chapter from the Laura Ingalls Wilder books and we went from the Little House in the Big Woods to Farmer Boy in one year....one chapter at a time. Teachers RULE!
dfs

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a library patron; she said it was her mother's favorite book. Since it was a memoir about teaching, I decided to give it a try.
The strengths of this book actually made me kind of sad...specifically, the author is very straightforward about the economic and professional issues facing teachers. The issues he faced in the 1920s and 1930s in Kentucky are the same issues we are dealing with today.
While some of his teaching methods resonated, I had some difficulties with the justifications for violence in the book. The descriptions of conflicts sometimes seemed so far-fetched, I decided they had to be true...otherwise, they would make more sense!
Overall, I strongly recommend this book as a first-person view of school systems in the early 20th century. This would be a good book to put you in the right frame of mind for tackling Dewey.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't know why I was so captivated by this book. It may be that I am a school teacher and so the themes of this book are personal to me. It may be the shock of rural life in the 30s that draws me in. Maybe it was that I couldn't tell if he was making it all up because the stories were so over the top. This to say, I don't know if you'd love it, but I couldn't put it down.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This well written, interesting, and charming book took me to Kentucky in the 1920s. I enjoyed his writing style immensely and will read more by this author.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jesse Stuart wrote this memoir in 1948. For most of his life he was a dedicated teaching, starting in his profession at the age or 17, in the 1920s, in the most rural areas of Kentucky. Jesse had still to finish HS. Through pure grit, hard work, and determination he completed college while continuing to teach and working to bring change to the education system.

This is a deeply profound and thought-provoking memoir of a time in America I doubt we will never see again. Jesse projects an optimism and a belief in the basic goodness of mankind that, rather than expanding as society has moved forward, has instead dwindled. Sadly, the country has been on a backward slide for decades when it comes to valuing education for all this country’s children, and teaching basic values is almost considered subversive.

I would have not picked this book up if not for my book club. I strongly suggest giving it a read.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This classic was an interesting read. Jesse Stuart used to be a household name and this book was quite famous, though I'd never heard of it until it was recommended to me. It's about Stuart's teaching experience in one-room schoolhouses and other rural schools. He was an old-time teacher who got out of the profession as it was in the process of changing into what it is today. It was good for me to get his perspectives, both as a very young man and one with more experience, and to see some of the things that teachers were up against in those times. He thought that more professional schools and teachers would help with many problems in the school system. He advocated for this, and for many changes that took place slowly in his lifetime. He discussed various issues such as small-town politics, poverty, and even violence, as these things affected the schools and his own life. He was quite zealous about the value of education -- made me think of John Gatto's discussion of the "true believer." His perspective changed somewhat in the end as he realized that the schools were turning into a vast assembly line system and the individuals getting lost within it, while teachers still weren't earning enough income to feel they could even support a family. While he still loved teaching, he eventually left it behind to return to farming, the profession of his roots, and to finally marry the woman he loved. What I most appreciated about this book were the methods he used to reach people educationally, to help them grow as learners; the peek into another time in our country's educational life and his unique perspective on it; and his insights that came later as the schools became more systematized and consolidated. Aside from these things, he tells some pretty amazing and amusing stories as well.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of course, I liked "The Thread that Runs so True" because the hero was an educator like I was. On the other hand, education in Kentucky during the 1920's, 30's, and 40's bore only a faint resemblance to my teaching years 50+ years later. Mr. Stuart solved many a problem in his schools with his fists. He could barely scratch together a living on his salary, and walking to his job summer and winter--sometimes 10 miles each way--sounds pretty horrific. But, I loudly applaud his courage, his stamina, and his insight beyond measure. And, he's a great yarn-spinner out of the southern tradition. It's good to be reminded that behind all the sweet reminiscences about "the good old days" that some elements of that life were bleak at best. Pardoning its sentimentalism, I give this one 4 stars.

[Raelene · Rating 3 out of 5]

An excellent 'teacher' book. I was very impressed with this man's tenacity. He took what little education he had and did everything in his power to take what he could to others. Considering the near hostile environment so many had towards teachers and education at that time, he really did accomplish great things. Hooray for education and hooray for those who fight for it.

[Poiema · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor students in the backwoods of Kentucky leave a trail of blood in the snow. They have no shoes and their tortured walk to the one-room schoolhouse would test the best of us, but their desire for an education supersedes the pain. This was not so long ago, either. A poignant story of how a dedicated teacher fills the learning hunger in the hearts of these amazing students.

[Kela · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a lot of living packed into this book! Stuart shares the triumphs and struggles of teaching in very rural Kentucky in the 1930s and 40s. I enjoyed the book even though I felt like it took me forever to read it. Stuart writes in a very conversational style. It's more like you're sitting by his side listening to him recall tall tales from his teaching days than reading a book.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being trained as a teacher, I enjoyed reading this and I am glad I never had to go through these circumstances as a student or as a teacher.

[Tina · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars .... review coming soon

[Eugenea Pollock · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of our best car books--so insightful on the profession of teaching and so gratifying for 2 teachers to read!

[Cathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

My aunt loved this book, and chose to give her autographed copy to me, calling me “the reader in the family.” I appreciated the honor, but I felt a little dubious about the book. I read Jesse Stuart’s “My World” as a teen because someone thought that I should read his works since I was a Kentuckian. I found “My World” had beautiful descriptions of KY woodlands and nature, but not much plot. Honestly, as a teen, I’d rather be out in nature, digging up the wild ferns to replant at home, or learning to dig up a sassafras root for making tea, or just enjoying the fall colors – all things I already enjoyed -than I would just reading about Jesse Stuart’s descriptions of nature. For that matter, as much as I like reading, I probably still would prefer the reality to the written word.

My mom, however, had never read “The Thread that Runs So True,” and wanted to read it after I did. So, that hurried me along a little in choosing it to read.

I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. It did have a meandering plot, of sorts, about Jesse Stuart trying to improve education in KY. That may not sound very interesting, but the stories he told of old country folk were often funny. Those stories reminded me of the old country folk that I knew and loved. My grandfather had taught in a one-room schoolhouse like that of Jesse Stuart, and would often have us roaring with laughter over some tale or another that he remembered. Jesse Stuart was no different. His story reminded me, at times, of Catherine Marshall's "Christy."

One of the characters said that these folks spoke in poetry, with rhythm, adding the prefix “a” to words, and leaving off the hard g’s. I knew exactly what she meant, as in the sentence, “I was a-walkin’.” And even though I am all grown up now, and my own father was a stickler for more correct grammar, I still find myself talking that way, like my mother’s people, whenever I find myself in conversation with someone of that accent. In fact, my husband used to say that he could always tell who was on the phone by how deep my accent had become! (My dad thought that if we spoke correctly, more people would take us seriously, and he was probably right.) Sometimes I wonder if people who don't know me very well think I'm mocking them if I walk into a room with one accent and leave with another, but really, I can't help it.

Jesse Stuart’s stories were funny, and even if they sounded like they might start to get boring, such as having a business meeting, then generally there was a brawl or something unexpected to liven up the story. "We never knew, when we attended a board meeting, who would come out alive or who would be left dead."

I can also understand why my aunt loved this story, since she, too, was a teacher from KY.

The title, “The Thread that Runs So True” referred to an old song, as well as to learning by playing, which became one of Jesse Stuart's goals for younger children.

That reminded me of my mom’s slogan when I embarked on homeschooling my children for preschool. (She had homeschooled us for preschool, although there wasn’t such a thing at the time.) She said, “Keep it short and sweet.” I found that wise for my audience and I found many ways to keep it sweet, to help them love learning.

Some of Jesse Stuart’s story was violent. Although Stuart loved teaching and loved his students, some of the discipline was harsh. I understand that it was a different time, but some of it still feels extreme. I do understand the need for a teacher for self-defense, though.

We have the opposite problem today, where nothing much is done with a violent teen until there is a tragedy. My sister, another teacher, had her life threatened by a high school student in the parking lot. Since the administration did not stand up for her or support her, she decided that her life was more important than her job and quit. Then she got more education herself and returned to teaching, this time college. But again, the behavior of some of the students was awful. One of her former college students ended up shooting a couple of other students on campus on a day in which she was not present. Although they were injured, no one died. I have another friend who received an awful concussion, with lingering brain damage, at the hands of one of her students.

“The teacher held the destiny of a great country in his hand as no member of any other profession could hold it. All other professions stemmed from the products of his profession. Within this great profession, I thought, lay the solution of most of the cities’, counties’, states’, and the nation’s troubles. It was within the teacher’s province to solve most of these things… It was the gateway to the correcting of evils. It was the gateway to inspire the nation’s succeeding generations to greater and more beautiful living with each other; to happiness, to health, to brotherhood, to everything!”

While I do hold the teaching profession in great esteem, and I think they can do great things, I have become more skeptical, particularly as I’ve seen how the teachers have been squeezed between parents and their own administrations. Education can’t solve all the world’s ills, partly because the students and/or the parents are not always willing. I think parents can’t push all this responsibility onto teachers. Parents are the first teachers of respect, compassion, empathy – even of the ability to listen, which is in short supply in this fast-paced world. I realize that Jesse Stuart faced some awful conditions and some awful, and even violent opposition, but our time has its own challenges. I think teachers have been squeezed too far and run too thin. They need the moral support and the help of the parents.

This book meets both my qualifications for 5 stars. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it’s one I’d read again someday, for the humor.

Favorite quotes:

“They didn’t have to leave landlocked Winston to find recreation. They had it at home. They created it just as they created most of their necessities of life.”

“All you have to do to solve a town problem that hurts your school is to get the women on your side. Show ‘em what’s wrong, and they’ll clean it up.”

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a long and slow read, probably mostly of interest to Kentuckians and educators. Jesse Stuart was born in 1906 and was involved in eastern Kentucky education at the same time as my father’s three oldest sisters. I heard many times from them that he started his literary career by writing poems on the backs of tulip popular leaves. In this memoir Stuart’s style is direct and often sentimental. He is an engaging and evocative storyteller.

For some unknown (and frustrating) reason he changed the geographical names. Greenup county became Greenwood, the Ohio River is called Big River, and Ironton, Ohio is renamed Toniron. And those were only a few that I could untangle. I understand why he altered personal names as he was sued many times. Who knew education was that contentious? Stuart was also prone to settling some disagreements physically, though he cared deeply about his students and the teachers he worked with. In the end he decided that teaching didn’t pay enough and left the profession for sheep farming and writing. He published widely and became Kentucky’s poet laureate in 1954.

Somewhere the aunts are smiling.

[Mary Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dad's recommendations are usually spot-on, but this one fell very short. The content was classic and solid (a mountain school teacher in Kentucky sharing his rural experience) and I've read many enjoyable memoirs with similar themes. But Stuart was just so unlikable. The writing was bland (consistent simple sentence structure that's so tedious and boring to follow), the experiences felt cardboard flat, and the narrating voice was so unreliable. I instantly distrust any memoir that's entirety is describing one's accomplishments. I read it for the sentiment and the true experience, and I felt like most of the book (especially the second half) was purely his "beliefs" and how much "better" they were for the system, and then his persecution for it. Kind of a rant but in short, didn't like it and won't be reading more.

[Heather Ummel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent companion along with Hillbilly Elegy and The Man who Moved Mountains in understanding rural Kentucky and therefore Ohio from all the Kentuckians that followed the money and jobs north over the border. This is ostensibly a book about education, but I found it to be much more an eye-opening look at the violence that is endemic to KY. Between the violence and the politics that ruled everything (especially education), it’s a sad glimpse into how and why Kentucky lost all its best and brightest after WW2.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Thread That Runs So True is a moving tribute to rural Kentucky teachers who, often working for little or no pay, provided education, direction, and hope to their communities. Jesse Stuart began teaching at 17 in the early 1920s, leading 54 classes a day in a one room schoolhouse. His beautifully written memoir honors those who shaped lives through teaching—even when nearly every other job offered better pay, security, and personal safety.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A piece of Americana here - coming out in 1949 and covering Stuart’s experiences as a teacher, high school principal and county school system supervisor in the mountainous region of Kentucky in the 1920s and 30s, a world that hadn’t changed all that much when he wrote the book, certainly not as much as he wanted it to change. The isolation, particularly in winter, rough living conditions and unsettled political climate really come through.

[Adele · Rating 2 out of 5]

This wasn't a bad book exactly. It had lots of interesting stuff in it. But it was so anecdotal and repetitious and very, very dated. I never considered not finishing it, but by halfway through I just wanted to hurry up and get done with it so I could move on to reading something better.

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend sent me this book which I am also going to share with my mom. Jesse Stuart was a teacher, principal, and school superintendent in rural Kentucky at various times.

The parts I liked best was when he was describing his experiences and his students. I didn't recognize the poem/rhyme that the school children did at recess that inspired the title. I've never been good at symbolism but I thought it was interesting that he could recognize that the rhyme discussed "play" and apply it to his beginning students at his first school. It seemed like he made learning fun for them and also for the remedial English students at an Ohio high school much later in his career. It seemed many of the students he had were good, motivated students who wanted to learn. Many went on to become teachers themselves.

Much is also made of the good teachers who were not rehired because of the politics of rural Kentucky schools. In fact, I don't recall him discussing too many bad teachers.

The parts I liked least were when he had to segue into the politics of the schools--the trustees, the state school laws, the board of education, etc. I agree with him that it did seem a bit complicated, and it also seemed like if the trustees or board changed then each brought in their own teachers etc. whether you were a good teacher or a bad teacher.

I'm not quite sure what their wages from then would equate to today. It seemed that it was hard to live on what a teacher made, especially since they were probably only paid for the months they taught (6 or 7 from what I recall). That fact seemed to run some teachers off the profession after a while (including the author). Then again, there was a whole school that taught without getting paychecks for a while, so that wasn't the only determining factor. There was also no teacher's pension plan or retirement plan back then--at least not when he first started teaching.

It's interesting that while we still have trouble attracting and keeping teachers, we now also have the problem of how to get rid of some of the "bad" teachers so, while the unions have done much good, at times, they probably also hinder education. I do agree that teachers shouldn't be dismissed, as some of these were, on a whim based on who is in charge--but there are some teachers who don't put in the effort with their students, who don't really teach, and who probably should leave the profession who can't be ousted from their positions because every time it's tried, it's blocked. That's not good either.

[Angela Mcentee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll never forget the moment when my good friend in high school suggested ditching Biology. This was an incredibly novel idea - go to school but just not GO to one class? You can do that? yes you can! BRILLIANT!

Speaking of school, I picked up this book from the local thrift store, and thought, oh yes, I'm always interested in books about teachers working within impoverished communities... (i realized at that moment, hey this IS a subgenre - Conrack, To Sir with Love and Educating Esme spring to mind) and at first, the book was very interesting. Then I hit a patch where he's been promoted up to school superintendent (sorry if that's not exactly an accurate job description - basically he's out of the classroom and on to solving budgetary issues) and then we hit a rough patch, me and the book - it devolved into the petty details and politics of a job run by the whims of the state/county legislation. I skimmed to the end but started to think about how actually this was a common theme in these books, too. The book was weighed down with non teaching related duties, and this is what makes a lot of these teachers leave the profession. Their inability to really help kids due to the limitations and restraints of budget and crazy 'rules' meant to help but only hinder everyone involved (such as the heavy stress on testing).
so, parts of it are good. I still have lingering guilt when I don't FINISH a book completely, but I now realize much like my friend's lesson about ditching a class, you can and should skip some things sometimes. I don't have to slog through boring passages just to prove something to anyone including my inner biology teacher.

[Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Jody Greaney for recommending this book - and lending me your copy. To quote her “every teacher should read this book”.
It was a bit choppy with vignettes interspersed into the narrative that wove entertaining stories into the sad state of rural Kentucky educational system starting in the early 1920’s.
Jesse Stuart appears to have caused much controversy during his “tenure” in education. The book was incredibly inspirational. I am sure it is not for everyone and lacks a tremendous amount of political correctness that some of my friends seem to hold against a book. I could list a lot of spoilers here and will not and try and summarize with the fact that there were spankings, fists thrown and behavior that in today’s norms would have definitely led to firing and jail terms. Yet, remember time and place and norms and do not try and put the era of this book into today.
I found the plight of education in a small, rural school rings true today. I live across the road from a small rural school in California and am buying this book for the principal/superintendent because many of the “wrongs” Mr. Stuart lists are still happening today. This year there will be no high school bus for the handful of kids that need to travel 90 hard minutes to the high school. The kids will have to shuttle themselves to a town south (30 minutes) to catch the bus to and from school. What would Mr. Stuart have done? I wish he were here to ask...

This book will stick with me for a very long time. As usual, not for everyone, but give it a try.

[Deborah Wilbrink]

"The Thread That Runs So True" is an amazing story! I'm a former teacher, grades K-12 and adult in my career, always in urban high-risk schools. The stories of teachers in the days of multiple grade levels in one class amaze me - -I've seen some first-hand journals. Jesse Stuart has a voice that rings true and his experiences of having to prove himself physically and politically with students, parents, school board and administration are fascinating, showing how much school life has changed, as well as insight into the personalities. (I remember paddling, growing up in my own rural school, but no one ever dreamed of hitting a teacher! As a teacher myself, I see instances today of teachers being bullied again.) Above all Stuart's words and tales shine with the impulse of service and improvement for those around him, seeing education as a necessity for a good life, and including character improvement. This is something I realized as a high school teacher in my first year, that one is an example and should make moral statements, for some students experience only survival tactics. "Good teaching is forever and the teacher is immortal." - Jesse Stuart. Thanks for recommending this. As a memoir editor and consultant, I also know the power and ephemerality of memory, but Stuart convinced -- me his story is really exciting, even today.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought that this was a very inspirational book, though not extremely well-written. I wonder how much money I would have if I had a quarter for every use of the word "pupil". Stuart is more of a story-teller than a novelist which may be why so much of his story is repetative (especially near the end). --- I've read comments about this book that Stuart's story seems a little too much like a tall-tale but for those that are not native Kentuckians or from rural America it may be hard to understand what a rural culture is like. Eastern Kentucky has changed dramatically since Stuart's teaching days but there are still remnants of the mountain culture that he fought against. --- Also, I'm still wondering why he felt the need to mask all of the place names in his book. There is no Greenwood County in Kentucky, but rather a Greenup county just past Maysville, along the Ohio River (Big River in the book), near West Virginia. Perhaps he was afraid of reprisals? --- At any rate, I thought that this was an excellent book and should be required reading for aspiring teachers or those wishing to enhance their leadership skills.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read. Written like a 1940's thriller, Stuart describes his upbringing growing up in rural Eastern Kentucky - dirt poor but hungry for an education as a way out of his family poverty. He suceeds and becomes an educator himself, stirring things up where ever he goes by implementing new ideas, pushing teacher equity and improved pay conditions as his agenda when he was superintendent, and on the odd occasion, using his fists to both protect his students and send a message to stay out of his schools. I loved the matter-of-fact style of writing, the "of course I punched him and broke his nose" approach to running schools and his tenacity and courage. Because his story is so inspiring, I did a little research on Jesse Stuart and it turns out he was a major mover and shaker in education in Kentucky, served as a consultant for the US Department of Education and left a Foundation to support education as his legacy. An inspiring story in so many ways, but an excellent read for a new or struggling teacher how needs to be inspired and encouraged to keep on keeping on.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is about a teacher who starts teaching in Kentucky at age 16 before he's done with high school. However, since it's the 1920's, many of his students have barely reached an 8th grade education, much less if they have passed first grade.

It is a story that shows how dedicated teachers in Kentucky were at that time, regardless of the very low amount of money they received, the conditions they had to go to work in, or the conditions of the buildings they were given. Sometimes the children would even whip them, or try to.

This man did so well, he made it to principal and even superintendent. He tried to change the system to make it a better place, but it was amazing just how well he was beaten down and how his whole town turned against him just for trying to make it so the schools stayed open. Actions turned into perceived slights, and people were offended, even though nothing actually bothered them personally.

He ends with saying that Kentucky would never change itself, it would have to be led. He wrote this in the late 1940's and I wonder if much has changed since then.