Welcome to the wonderful world of public education, as seen through the eyes of seasoned substitute teacher, Horton Hagardy. It's a time you might recall with great fondness if you were a student--a day to escape the oppressive existence of your everyday tormentors. If you're a substitute, however, these dark, funny, and often poignant stories, take you to a very real place.

In Emil DeAndreis's new book, Beyond Folly, we are on the front lines of the education system, in the trenches, so to speak, of what it feels like to face the everyday challenges of being a teacher on call. These thoughtful and insightful linked-together tales give the reader a behind-the-scenes peek into the life and mind of a substitute teacher, an isolated, underpaid, and underappreciated professional.

 

"The further one reads in Beyond Folly, the more one comes to understand the choreography behind its farcical panoply of strange characters in absurd circumstances. As with A Confederacy of Dunces, the deadpan, staggering weirdness of it all is a veil to cover piercing insight into how we deal with being human, tribal, and hopeful."

- Robert Lieberman, Conte

"Fun, funny, and acutely observed, Beyond Folly is the book for anyone who has ever substitute taught, or even just thought about it."

- Adam Wilson, author of Flatscreen