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"A gay woman leads us into the musty emotional attic many of us inhabit off and on. Her sometimes tentative, sometimes bold steps through
life, from her closeted years into the clearing, remind the reader that insecurity isn't our singular private property. Through Stapleton's honesty, we are reminded that loneliness can drive us
to find our way back to unity with Self and others."
– Susan Samuels Drake, poet and author of Fields of Courage: Remembering Cesar Chavez & the People Whose Labor Feeds Us
"Authenticity, awareness and self-respect: attributes teachers are committed to instilling in their charges. But what happens when the
teacher is prohibited by the community in which she lives from fostering those same attributes in herself because she is a lesbian?
In this moving and powerful memoir, one devoted, energetic
teacher travels the road to self-discovery and finds that the self-esteem and love she plants in her students are the greatest riches one can possess—and not just for them, but for herself. Against a White Sky is a must read for anyone involved in education be they students, teachers, parents, administrators, or community members interested in supporting the education of our young, and in creating a society where its members value each other for their differences as well as their similarities."
– Kristan Ryan, Educator and Author of Strange Angels: The Book of Damaris
"Laurie Stapleton's compassionate Against a White Sky wraps the heart around a young, gay woman's quest for
self-acceptance. Her battles to overcome prejudice in small-town America while succeeding in the classroom are powerful. Her eye for detail engages the reader as we meet challenging students, teachers,
and a few quirky local characters that capture the color and humor of this agricultural community. Perhaps the most compelling "aftertaste" is the naked otherness, captured poignantly in
the teacher's lounge, where she cannot join in with her colleagues for even the most mundane conversations about living with husbands and wives. Because she is silent, they can't know that the
person who shares her kitchen—and her home—is a woman. In her strong, vibrant voice, she tells it like it is. And we need the telling. Over and over again."
– Susan W. Heinlein, Author of When Lifemates Die: Stories of Love, Loss & Healing
"Educators have much to learn about fear, homophobia, and respect from Stapleton's journey through the halls of an All-American
high school. This sensitive tale also speaks candidly to high school students, teachers, and parents about understanding and overcoming the peer pressures that rattle both teenagers and adults on
campuses across the nation."
- Louise Kantro, English Teacher, Modesto High School
"If I had my way, Against a White Sky would be required reading for every educator, young or old, in this and every other country! In this compellingly personal coming of age journey, Laurie Stapleton has managed to gently remind us that any educator worth her salt makes room for life lessons in a classroom curriculum. Ms. Stapleton makes this 66-year-old want to return to high school in the off chance of having a teacher like her."
– Aleshia Brevard, Author of The Woman I Was Not Born To Be, A Transsexual Journey
"Against a White Sky is a deeply moving and courageous personal narrative. Writing in a fresh lyrical style, Stapleton situates her experiences as a beginning high school teacher into intersecting personal and social contexts: gender and sexuality; class, race, and ethnicity; public education; teaching pedagogies; and community. For all of us who care about psychological well-being, our own and others', and social justice, this is a must read."
– Teresa Arendell, Professor of Sociology, Colby College
"Laurie Stapleton's battle is the quiet, inward, time-worn fight fought by all lesbians everywhere,
for tolerance and
acceptance. She speaks to every woman's heart."
– Victoria Maitland, retired teacher
Buy this book!
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