Is There a Pigeon in the Room: My Life in Schools

(Paperback)

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Is There a Pigeon in the Room is a deeply personal book about Cameron Wyllie's remarkable four-decade career in teaching. It's a tapestry of anecdotes and reflections on topics like drugs, parenting and sex education, laced with stories about memorable individuals.

What did he say to the Third Year after drinking too much gin with the Head Who was Adolf What happened to the horrible bus driver While the intention is to make the reader laugh plenty, Cameron also deals with discipline, refugees, tragic events, his own status as a gay man and tells us the story of Tes, an Eritrean boy who inspired hundreds of young people with his love of education.

Cameron taught over 8,000 students in his career. Having been once described as 'the place where Jean Brodie meets Kenneth Williams' the book also charts the surprising trajectory of a career which culminated in his appointment as Principal of George Heriot's, one of Edinburgh's most prestigious schools.

'Enlightening and excruciatingly honest ... told with such a lightness of touch this is an earnest, laugh-out loud memoir' Emun Elliott (actor)

'Cameron Wyllies prose, like his teaching, is funny, warm, surprising and not quite like that offered by anyone else' David Greig (playwright)

'A scrumptious selection box of a schoolteacher's anecdotes, musings and erudite observations . . . his book has a warm heart, a dry wit and a resilient aftertaste' Janey Jones (novelist and best-selling childrens author)

Reviews

'Cameron Wyllie's account of his four decades as a teacher is rich in anecdote and reflection, but its most notable feature is its generosity of spirit'

-- Allan Massie * The Scotsman *

'A warm and witty memoir'

* Sunday Times *

'This certainly isnt a book that only educators can appreciate. It is far too well-written, and far too human, for that'

-- James McEnaney * Bella Caledonia *

'An enlightening and excruciatingly honest look at what its really like to educate and prepare young people for their future. Packed full of hysterical anecdotes, colourful characters and told with such a lightness of touch this is an earnest, laugh-out loud memoir'

-- EMUN ELLIOTT (actor)

'Cameron Wyllies prose, like his teaching, is funny, warm, surprising and not quite like that offered by anyone else . . . one discovers Mr Wyllies most interesting virtue: his unerring eye for the truth'

-- DAVID GREIG (playwright)

'A scrumptious selection box of a schoolteacher's anecdotes, musings and erudite observations . . . his book has a warm heart, a dry wit and a resilient aftertaste. It touches on a universal and everlasting truth: that education is not really about subjects and exams after all . . . A delight'

-- JANEY JONES (novelist childrens author)

'It made me laugh and cry - most of all I was touched and in awe of the sheer joy that comes through - joy in the work and joy in engaging with young people'

-- CLARE BRENNAN

Author Bio

Cameron Wyllie started teaching English at Daniel Stewarts and Melville College in Edinburgh in 1980 and ended his career nearly forty years later as Principal of George Heriots School, the Sunday Times Scottish Independent School of the decade (2021). He is now a writer and journalist and lives in Edinburgh with his partner, Kevin.