While memoirs can be inherently difficult to review, I throughly enjoyed Block’s latest. As the reader quickly learns, the title is a bit of a misnomer given the limited amount of “school” that takes place. Rather, the memoir details a mother’s radical desire to preserve her son’s youth, no matter the cost. As Block grows, her measures only get more extreme and one day Block finds himself crawling around the house, ostensibly to improve his handwriting. As Block wrestles with pleasing his mother and finding his own identity, a captivating story unfolds.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the Advanced Reader Copy. This review will also be posted on Goodreads and on Instagram.

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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book. As a former homeschool student myself, Mr Block’s memoir hit close to home in some ways. My experience was compounded by cerebral palsy, but I certainly missed out on important social interaction with my peers and felt the loneliness he describes in this book. Mr Block paints a rich and engrossing portrait of his life with his codependent mother and somehow manages to make you love her despite the damage she caused him. A masterful memoir.

This book was an easy and interesting read. Throughout, I really felt for the author for the things he went through (I'll never be over the typewriter!) But also recognized the experience of loving a difficult person. This was a fascinating exploration of homeschooling especially considering it's still highly unregulated.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7830306661

This memoir pulls you in quickly and keep you there. The author, Stefan Merrill Block, is not the first to speak out about the damage homeschooling caused him, and he won't be the last. In fact, I suspect we will continue to see an increase in stories of this type as a new wave of homeschoolers enter adulthood. However, this memoir is particularly special. Block recounts his childhood openly and honestly, with a hindsight that truly illuminates some of the real horrific experiences he had as a preteen living in isolation. However, he narrates this without judgment. He doesn't try to pass his mom off as "bad" or "good". He simply recounts his
childhood, and hers, with a voice that is
compelling and sympathetic. This book is a great starting point for the important conversations that need to be had regarding homeschooling.

This is a homeschooling tale unlike any other I have encountered. Stefan Merrill Block's mother started homeschooling him when he was in elementary school, but not for religious reasons—she was determined to keep him close to her as the young child she yearned never to lose. Even with his brother and father in the home, Stefan's life became one of isolation, with only his mother for company most of the time and with little actual education taking place. The way he presents the story makes it clear how caught he was in an emotional minefield and how challenging and hard-fought his return to the education system ultimately was. That he managed to become a functioning and compassionate adult—and, eventually to write this book—is remarkable. This book was fascinating—and a strong argument for oversight and regulation of "homeschooling."