Educating Esmé follows Esmé, a first-year teacher in a fifth-grade Chicago class. Through her diary, she details accounts of the struggles she faced teaching in an inner-city school, both with the administration and with children and their families. Though Esmé often had unconventional methods that were discouraged by administration and even other teachers, these methods proved successful and reflected well in her students’ character development and test scores.

I had to read this for a class I’m taking, otherwise I honestly wouldn’t have picked this up, but I’m glad I did because it gave me more insight into a teacher’s life and what they face in and out of the classroom. Esmé was very honest, even with her bad moments.

I recommend this to anyone considering going into teaching, especially in an inner-city school, as this shows all the good and bad sides of it. Educating Esmé shows both the good and bad parts of teaching, holding nothing back. Although it wasn't written with the intention of being a self-help book, I do believe that this book can be beneficial to those wanting to become teachers and those who already are teachers.