The 8 O'Clock Bell

Neil Brewer

Dec 2014 · Neil Brewer

About this ebook

Humorous and poignant poetry accompanied by captivating, black & white historic photographs sharing that which has happened to us all throughout our years spent in school.

Ratings and reviews

My students are fascinated, not only with the "old time" photos in The 8 O'Clock Bell but also by the humorous content of his poems. They are a wonderful reflection of days gone by, yet there's so much that's the same in schools today. So many of my students talked about how they could relate to what he wrote about. Mr. Brewer recently gave a performance at our school and you could have heard a pin drop in the room when he was reciting or singing his poems. We sent "thank you" letters to him and I just have to share one of my 5th graders letters. Dear Mr. Brewer, Thank you for coming to Medora Elementary. You are a very good poetry writer. I think it is cool how you express your feelings in a book then share them with the whole world…My favorite (poem) was, Line up. I also liked your cigar box. I like how you put in a lot of memories. Your poems are smooth and calm. Sincerely, Brooklyn. I pull this book out every April during National Poetry Month. Sherry Jasper Medora Elementary Library Media Specialist

About the author

Neil Brewer spent the first twenty years of his teaching career in 5th and 6th grade classrooms, and has drawn from that journey with students on many occasions in various written forms. For his epic thematic adventure, The Travels of Harmon Bidwell, Neil received The Christa McAuliffe Fellowship, and Phi Delta Kappa International published Flying With Both Wings, the story of how 104 year-old Harmon and the highly interactive curriculum of his travels were created.  The author also enjoys playing a variety of instruments, and has performed in three long-running stage productions of A Cotton Patch Gospel. Neil has also taken The 8 O'Clock Bell to the stage of The Derby Dinner Playhouse, to The Ogle Center for the Arts as a member of the Chase Bank Children's Series, and to Hayswood Theatre of Corydon, Indiana. "Three Kids in a Car" from the CD, Neil Brewer and Friends are Back in School went to #1 on Sirius XM Radio, and all proceeds from the music go to The Harvard Stem Cell Institute to put an end to Muscular Dystrophy. A frequent keynote speaker/performer for special events and conferences across the country, Neil has written hundreds of poems related to personal experiences, and performs the very best of the 'school ones' in his current presentation.

All of us - at least, those of us who have ever been to school - can relate to the humorous, yet often deeply poignant verses and music of  The 8 O'Clock Bell.

Currently, Neil greatly enjoys his family, his Bentley, his writing, his presentations to students and adults throughout the country, and his work with teachers in his graduate and undergraduate education courses at Indiana University Southeast, in New Albany, Indiana.