Lies My Teacher Told Me is a courageous piece of nonfiction written by James W. Loewen, sociologist and author. Loewen grew up in Decatur, Illinois to a librarian and teacher for a mother, and a medical director for a father. Starting off as a National Merit Scholar from MacArthur igh School, he went on to obtain a doctorate degree in sociology at Harvard University. Loewen has taught at a historically black college in Mississippi and also at the University of Vermont where he taught about race relations for 20 years. Before writing, Lies My Teacher Told Me, Loewen co-wrote Mississippi: Conflict and Change, a United States history textbook. He fought for its right for use in public schools, and won with a radical victory. James Loewen, only then went on to write Lies My Teacher Told Me, with the intention of letting …show more content…
Many criticized Loewen, saying he is just another mere “teacher basher” as he says in his Introduction To The Second Edition, but there is a reason to believe that he did not write it for that reason. He also is not biased in his writing though some may argue that he is biased against history textbooks. Loewen’s reason for writing this book is simple. He wants to uncover the truth behind history textbooks. He wants to make a change for the upcoming students who will learn about the history of their own country. Lies My Teacher Told Me analyzes American history and how it is taught, specifically with the use of history textbooks. Loewen starts off the book by explaining how traditional history textbooks have left out many different facts, and even misused some of them inappropriately. He believes that the reason students feel bored and indifferent to the