A Two-Pennies Day: My Unfinished Life

About the Book

When he was six or seven years old, Jim Brewbaker's grandmother, the daughter of a Confederate veteran, looked him in the eye one day and said, "The best blood in Virginia flows through those veins." For a long time he believed his grandmother, though he wasn't sure what all that good blood was for or meant. But times were changing in Virginia, and, as he grew up, Jim changed too-marrying twice, becoming a father and grandfather, finding a place in the world where he could contribute.

By the time Jim finished graduate school and took his first college teaching position in 1971, his own values had changed greatly. As he puts it, he had been "radicalized" by the events of the late-sixties: Viet Nam, the civil rights movement, and the shootings at Kent State University.

Jim's story, told here in a montage of short narratives, poetry, and an interview with Anita Hancock Bailey-the grandmother who knew a great deal about quality Virginia blood-is one of growth, of hope, of joy in savoring life's small moments.

About the Author

A senior faculty member at Columbus State University in Georgia, James Brewbaker publishes widely in professional journals. As well, he writes personal narratives, short fiction, and poetry, much of it autobiographical. An ardent cook, gardener, and theater goer, he has been poetry editor of English Journal since 2003.