Crossing the Water: Eighteen Months on an Island Working with Troubled Boys-A Teacher's Memoir

Years ago, before the School but long after the lepers, I used to sail to Penikese Island. I have roamed its rocky spine, lain in its chirring tall grasses, and combed its shores for things cast away. With rare clarity, Daniel Robb has brought me back there and introduced me to its latest inhabitants, the young men who, themselves cast away, are given a last chance at piecing together a viable future. Artfully tied in with the events that shaped the author's youth (There, but for the grace of God, goeth I), this book is a vivid account of what its like to live in a pressure-cooker of pent-up violence and betrayed trust. Gutsy and sensitive, it has earned a top place on my "great books" list.

I say surprising because 18 months on a cold, ocean-swept island working with troubled boys might be a snore to read about, but this book isn't. I wanted to find out what happened from day to day to the boys and the staff at the school. The island is really another character in the book, too. Definitely worth a read, even if the subject matter seems not your kind of thing. It's a good story.

A high school English teacher, I am eager to read books that will help me understand my own students better. Dan Robb's memoir joins RAISING CAIN and REVIVING OPHELIA on my shelf of essential reads for teachers. It is poignant and authentic. Robb's passion for his work and his compassion for his students inspire me. I have students like those he describes; mine just have yet to run afoul of the law. I recommend this book to all teachers and to all parents of boys.

If you work with kids, have kids, teach or work with people, this is a great book about the struggle to help others and work on yourself. Dan is brutally honest, especially about himself. He has profound insight into his own motives and the willingness to share tem with us. He is also a heck of a writer. He's a pretty good carpenter too.

I throughly enjoyed this book. Daniel Robb has a way of painting a picture with words. One can see and experience this book instead of just reading it. With so many troubled children in the world, it was great to read about how a small island and a few determined people are helping a few of them.