First published 2025
Karen Lewis grew up on Chicago's South Side and spent decades searching for her purpose. She attended Mount Holyoke and Dartmouth, lived in Oklahoma and Barbados, tried medical school and film school. She taught high school science for over twenty years. In 2012, she became president of the Chicago Teachers Union and faced down the city's mayor in a historic strike. The walkout lasted days and drew national attention. Lewis challenged powerful interests and won better conditions for teachers and students. Her victory sparked teacher strikes across the country for years afterward. She died of brain cancer in 2021, but her organizing methods and fierce advocacy continue to influence educators nationwide. Written with historian Elizabeth Todd-Breland, this memoir captures Lewis's wit, charisma, and lifelong commitment to fairness in schools and communities.
Genres: autobiography, biography-memoir, activism, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: social-change, underdog
Setting: Chicago, Barbados, Oklahoma
Period: 2012, 2021
272 pages · Hardcover · Haymarket Books