I liked the end of The Guide, but/and I know it will drive my students crazy! The very last sentence can be interpreted in more than one day; I know what I think happens, I can different interpretations. Outwardly the protagonist changes, but when Narayan reveals his thoughts it doesn't appear that he has learned through his experiences. Despite my cynicism, I prefer unethical characters in books to learn, grow, and become nice people. I am also ambivalent about the changes in Rosie's character, despite the fact that I find her character development very logical and believable. While I don't always like books to leave me with questions that linger long after I finish reading, I do like teaching this kind of book because students have to reach their own conclusions about some of the open-ended questions. Even though I feel that not everything is fully resolved at the end of the book, I still feel that the book has a solid conclusion.
When I ordered it, I did not realize that Teaching as a Subversive Activity was published in 1971. I agree with the premise that students need to think rather than memorize, but education is moving in that direction. When examples of how much society and technology have changed "recently," I have to think about all the things that have changed since the invention of television and LP records that are the examples given in the book. I may go back and read more over the summer as reviews mention good ideas, but I have so many other books that I've started since winter break that there are others that I'd rather finish first.
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