Dear Maxine: Letters from the Unfinished Conversation

''Robert Lake has brought together the various pieces of Maxine Greene's life in these pages: Here are teachers, dancers, graphic artists, educational philosophers, and others. No one in these pages is content with things as they are; we have learned from life and from Maxine that there are always unanswered questions.'' -- From the Foreword by Sonia Nieto, professor emerita, University of Massachusetts, Amherst


''Within the context of letters to a dear and esteemed colleague, the contributors to this book expand their readers' and their own perspectives on the complexity and the promise of teaching, learning, and living a generous life.'' -- Karen Gallas, teacher and researcher


''For nearly sixty years, Maxine Greene has inspired us to question, to express ideas and insights, and to see past calcified logic and stunted expectation by valuing the necessary role of art, inquiry, democracy, and dialogue in education. These letters give the reader a renewed appreciation of her passion and energy, and of those who have learned from her.'' -- A. G. Rud, Washington State University


This collection brings together a prestigious group of individuals who have wondered, looked at, revised, acted, questioned, and changed their world because of their connection to American philosopher Maxine Greene. Teachers, students, colleagues, artists, and others, such as Gloria Ladson-Billings, Herb Kohl, Mike Rose, Deborah Meier, and William Ayers, have written edgy, thoughtful letters addressed to Greene about her work, their own, and the spaces in between. Rather than just thanking this master philosopher/teacher, each sets out to discover what they have learned from Maxine Greene and to discuss the continued relevance of her work in aesthetics, education, and social imagination. Maxine Greene has been referred to as ''the most important American philosopher [on education] since John Dewey.'' This wonderful collection continues the unfinished conversation that is her work.