It's Not All Flowers and Sausages: My Adventures in Second Grade
In a breezy, irreverent, frequently sarcastic and hilarious account of teaching her little friends in a Harlem public elementary school, Mrs. Mimi (aka Jennifer Scoggin) thumbs her nose at the stereotypes and the testing-mad, regulation-heavy supervisors who keep her from doing what she does best: teaching. Having taught second grade for seven years, Mrs. Mimi, she'll have you know, does not wear macaroni necklaces, hang out in the teacher's lounge or sing Raffi songs all day to happy campers; in fact, she plans her teaching day meticulously (starting in August) and buys most of her supplies herself. Her sendups of administrators are wickedly funny: the Weave, the assistant principal, is a pro at ignoring pressing issues, spending most of her time in her office reading the newspaper; a staff developer she calls the Bacon Hunter concocts whimsical, sadistic assessments after much time ordering her breakfast; the Fanny Pack, a support staffer, is a supremely clueless interrupter of the important daily schedule. The author rages from her soapbox about the school's Going Green policy (meaning she has to fight to make photocopies), data-gathering, meetings and unhelpful parents such as the ubiquitous Excuse Maker. With her pointed refrain, Aren't we all on the same team? this teacher's venting feels fresh and relevant.(Sept.)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.