Fairview instructor sticks to roots with first book
The most oft-repeated line from literary advisors to aspiring writers is to stick with what you know and you’ll score, and Dale Davis scores big with his debut book, Telling Tales Out of School.
A special education instructor at Fairview School, Davis not only stuck with what he knows with his first book, a fictitious look at the teaching profession, but also pulled from a journal he kept during his formative years as a teacher.
Telling Tales follows the plight of Cyrus Henshaw, who goes against what he feels is his better judgment to accept a job in the teaching profession after finding himself unemployed. Henshaw’s experiences at the fictional Pedagogue Middle School transforms him from a naive rookie to a seasoned veteran under the tutelage of a domineering principal and a staff that has its quirks, but is supportive in the end.
Although embellished, Henshaw’s experiences aren’t so much unlike what any rookie teacher would face upon entering the industry . . . and that’s by design, Davis said.
“This book is about humor and what I tried to do is capture the innocence and intimidation and naivete that a rookie teacher will face in a year,” Davis said. “But it also serves as a reminder to the teacher of why we do our job: It’s for the students.”
Davis calls the book an “extension of my personality,” and his humor shines through in the story as Henshaw encounters the daily challenges of adjusting to life in the classroom, his antics and those of his coworkers often leaving the reader laughing. And, in the case of teachers who read the book, at least, relating to those experiences.
“I’ve always enjoyed reading and I’ve always wanted to write, but I never knew what to write about,” says Davis, 45. The father of three, who graduated from Oneida High School in 1979, said he worked a variety of jobs before deciding to enter the teaching profession.
“People sort of encouraged me to get into education,” he said. “I was always a coach with my kids’ youth little league teams, and people suggested I should be a teacher because of the way I worked with kids.”
Davis, who is in his seventh year as a special education teacher, holds a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction and an EDS in supervision and administration. His bachelor’s had an emphasis on history and language arts.
It was after entering the teaching profession that Davis discovered the content for his first book.
“I would often tell people my experiences about the job and they’d say, ‘You should write a book about it.’
“I kept a journal. A lot of the events in the book actually happened, but they’re exaggerated,” he said.
While Telling Tales is a work of fiction, readers familiar with Fairview School and the Scott County School System will note some similarities, whether they are coincidental or intended.
Davis said that response has been good from his co-workers who have reviewed the book, though he admits that some were a little apprehensive initially.
“They wanted to see if I’d written about them,” he laughed. “I told them I had to change the names to protect the guilty. They’ve all given me positive feedback and have liked it. People in other occupations have also read the book and enjoyed the story.”
“For anyone who can remember their first year of teaching or are thinking about going into teaching, they will truly enjoy reading about this rookie teacher,” said co-worker Mike Lay, the school system’s technology coordinator.
Like most teachers dedicated to their profession, Davis cannot resist teaching a lesson, and readers will find that Davis draws heavily on his educational background in history throughout the pages of Telling Tales.
The official release date for Telling Tales is February 5, but Davis has several advance copies available for purchase, just in time for Christmas. The books can be purchased by e-mailing davis_d@scottcounty.net, or contacting the book’s publisher at www.tatepublishing.com. The book will soon be available at Oneida Book & Gift Shop as well.
Davis said that he is currently working on two new books, one of which is a sequel to Telling Tales.