Rating: 
Summary: A Teacher (and NEA Member) Reviews the Book
Review: This is a well-written, well documented attack on the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). .The premise is, as the title clearly states, that since the rise of teacher unions in the mid-1960s, the quality of education has dropped, innovation has been compromised and the cost of education has skyrocketed. He backs it up with a ton of statistics. To the credit of Brimelow, this could have been a stale listing of statistics punctuated by charts. However, he writes in a lively style and backs up his assertions with independent sources of information as well as damning quotes from movers and shakers in the NEA and the AFT. As a unsatisfied member of the NEA, I found the book to be quite eye-opening. It was also interesting to me since the Indiana branch of the NEA (Indiana State Teachers Association) was the source of a lot of his material and that is my State Association. This is a thought-provoking and challenging book. He does not just stand there and point out problems. He also 24 suggestions at the end of his book, although he is quick to note that this is a wish list and it will be extremely unlikely that half of these could ever see the light of day.
Rating: 
Summary: A Solid and Grim Case.
Review: This is not a cheerful or optimistic book, but it is one that absolutely had to be written. I am personally familiar with Peter Brimelow although it took me awhile to getting around to purchasing this particular work. I just recently read it and have to recommend it due to its thoroughness and its exposure of the teacher unions' true nature. Two reviews in Education Next derided the text for its derisive and condescending tone. Certainly there are sentences that one can easily find which are overwrought, but overall, Brimelow's tone is dispassionate and informative. When one considers that each year the taxpayer throws more and more money into education in America (over 750 billion this year alone), and that so much of this lucre finds its way into the teacher unions, it is easy to see that Worm in the Apple is a valuable addition to the public square. Indeed, it is an absolute necessity.
Rating:
Summary: A Solid and Grim Case.
Review: This is not a cheerful or optimistic book, but it is one that absolutely had to be written. I am personally familiar with Peter Brimelow although it took me awhile to getting around to purchasing this particular work. I just recently read it and have to recommend it due to its thoroughness and its exposure of the teacher unions' true nature. Two reviews in Education Next derided the text for its derisive and condescending tone. Certainly there are sentences that one can easily find which are overwrought, but overall, Brimelow's tone is dispassionate and informative. When one considers that each year the taxpayer throws more and more money into education in America (over 750 billion this year alone), and that so much of this lucre finds its way into the teacher unions, it is easy to see that Worm in the Apple is a valuable addition to the public square. Indeed, it is an absolute necessity.
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