On Subbing: The First Four Years by Dave RocheMicrocosm Publishing, 2005 (2nd edition)

I was reading this on the train, and a man came over to me and asked something about the title. Internally, I rolled my eyes: no, it’s not that kind of subbing. In this slim volume, Dave tells of his experiences over the course of four years as a substitute educational assistant (EA) in special ed. classes. The things he writes are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and always eye-opening: these are stories of people and places and situations that the average person probably doesn’t think much about. It’s also interesting to read about how Dave tries to do his job well without feeling like he’s compromising his punk ethics or identity: how to be capable and professional without necessarily buying into the current educational system’s hierarchies.