Released

Class Action: How Ontario’s Elementary Teachers Became a Political Force is now available from your local bookstore or online from Between the Lines Publishing. The book was released on 15 September; the launch was delayed due to the federal election. Personally, I appreciated the opportunity given to people to read the book before the launch, which is now expected in the second week of October (TBA).

It has been an interesting few weeks emotionally for me, an identity shift.

Two seeks ago, I went into Another Story Bookshop to buy a graphic novel for my 7-year-old granddaughter. At the cash, I asked Anjula if they were carrying my book. They were. Anjula asked another clerk to take over while she talked to “an author.” I was taken by surprise. It was the first time anyone had called me that.

Walking home, I was feeling a lot of ambiguity. When I got to my house, I phoned Barb, a painter friend. I wanted to talk about the process of re-inventing myself.  Barb had undergone a similar experience. “We all go through that,” she said. “You have to put in the time at your craft. You have to make time for the work, for others, and for yourself.”

After retiring from teaching, I had moved to Toronto. I had become friends with a couple of fellow writers, a videographer, and a sculptor. Yet, I had always felt an outsider. Now, having put in the time to become a published author, I belonged. I had achieved a kind of credibility in myself. The effect was expansive, exhilarating, and a little terrifying. Who was this re-invented person in the mirror?

Class Action: How Ontario’s Elementary Teachers Became a Political Force is also available at Indigo Books.