Accidental Lessons: a Memoir of a Rookie Teacher and a Life Renewed

Accidental Lessons is a remarkable memoir by successful Chicago journalist David W. Berner. Berner takes the reader inside his own personal journey; a heart wrenching and inspirational account of self-discovery. Berner had it all - a very successful career as a broadcast journalist and a wonderful family life. But his career hits a bump and he finds himself out of work. Life then delivers more trouble - his father becomes terminally ill and his marriage falls apart. In the middle of painful personal times, this respected journalist makes a decision that changes his life forever. Berner takes a job in a public school outside Chicago where the students are representations of society's "throw-aways." What he learns from them teaches him invaluable lessons about himself, who he is, and why he became a journalist in the first place - to seek out the truth and give voice to those who need their story told. David W. Berner is a journalist, documentary writer, and producer. He teaches writing, documentary and radio narrative classes at Columbia College in Chicago. He has published personal essays and hundreds of magazine articles and interviewed such greats as Ted Kennedy, Tiger Woods, and Bill Gates. He lives in Naperville, Illinois with his family and two dogs, Hogan and Mike. Mr. Berner is currently working on a collection of essays about fatherhood. Accidental Lessons is his first book.