Listen to the Truth They Bring by Lori Wojtowicz
Series: Exposing an American Divide

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Listen to the Truth They Bring by Lori Wojtowicz

Sometimes social change comes with the thunder of a revolt or uprising. Sometimes it begins in the silence of personal reflection. Educator Lori Wojtowicz believes it starts by listening.

She listens to her former students. In a series of interviews, Wojtowicz reconnects with former students, now with children and grandchildren of their own, asking them to share what classrooms and the country need to move toward social justice. They may not have prestigious titles or letters behind their names, but they are the experts of lived experience. They tell their truths with unabashed honesty.

Listening is not easy. As one former student said, “You must listen even when you don’t want to hear.” Listening is not passive. Wojtowicz challenges her readers to actively engage, to reflect not only on the students’ stories but on how the reader receives them. These former students fight for equity in the silence of reading and reflection. Join them.

CLBC’s Book Review:

Written from the heart and a wealth of experience, Listen to the Truth They Bring is a moving account of author Lori Wojtowicz as she interviews twenty-two of her former high school students who are now adults.

In this remarkable eye-opening book. As a part of Lori Wojtowicz’s 2 book series, Exposing an American Divide, this is a book to be enjoyed by all, and especially for teachers and those who work with children.

Educators and citizens of the world who are interested in first-hand accounts from Lori’s students who are now adults out in the world, will love this book.  Lori, an experienced, now retired, educator, felt exhausted by the larger school system and the impact racial disparities had on the children in her classroom.  Now retired but still seeing the very real divide that inequity has on the wider world, Lori sought out her now fully grown students to get 22 first-hand accounts of each person’s story and what their lives were like both during high school and once they were out in the world.  Lori’s ability to face the beliefs she held about students alongside that person’s first-hand accounting gives this book an integral place in the equity conversations happening around the world.  

I loved the layout of this book as well as the prominent voices throughout.  For example, one of Lori’s former students spent a lot of time in detention throughout high school. He’s now a high school principal who’s been able to use his experience of rewriting the story society had for him as a young black man to help other students overcome the same fate:  either prison or an early death.  Lori’s ability to confront the fact that she as a young white teacher at the time wouldn’t have been someone Che would have felt comfortable turning to added a lot of depth to his story.  I loved that Lori was able to find twenty-two of her former students to share what she thought about them in high school and contrast that with what was actually happening in that student’s life from his or her point of view.  As an educator myself, it made me think differently about the students in my room and how we as teachers hear the stories they choose to share.

Written with skill and in beautiful prose, Listen to the Truth They Bring by Lori Wojtowicz is a moving authentic literary work through research, knowledge, and experience brings enlightenment and awareness of what it’s like to be a young person of color in a school society as told by those same students twenty some years later.

Readers interested in the equity conversations happening in the world or in the educational system will love this book. Readers who enjoy memoirs will love this book. Educators who care about their students and who want to positively impact their lives will love this book as well! Readers and teachers will learn the vital importance of listening to children and their students and tips on how to listen. This book is also perfect for teachers who want to make a lasting positive impact on their students lives and also want to learn and understand more about what their students are facing in their everyday lives along with the challenges and situations they need help with to navigate and succeed in life. Listen to the Truth They Bring by Lori Wojtowicz is a remarkable, well-written and important book for all to read. Highly recommended by CLBC. Book reviewed by Mary Rosenthal for Chick Lit Book Cafe-Multi-Genre Literary Reviews & Author Services.

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CLBC International Book Excellence Award
Listen to the Truth They Bring by Lori Wojtowicz
For best Educational Books, Short Stories, Nonfiction of 2024

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