Book excerpt: Life for Grace Place is all about sucking on “meat jerkys” and Lenny Bean, her handsome lover. However, Grace’s mother has loftier plans for her daughter. She insists that Grace save her money and move to New York City so she can find fame and fortune as an actress. Grace works as a cleaning lady for wealthy Betty Ann Houseman so she can pool her pennies for the trip north. Betty Ann has a passion for men more pronounced than her overbite, and it isn’t long before she’s parting the sheets for Lenny Bean. But just before Grace leaves Hixson,Tennessee for New York City, she uncovers an insidious plot: the Bean family is trying to steal Betty Ann’s estate. Without being able to help Betty Ann, Grace flees to New York, where she faces her darkest hours. In a world of surprises, Grace truly discovers paradise. poetic,mystery,southern fiction,womens fiction,humorous,southern writers,southern books,1960s books,lesbian character,1960s stories,civil rights themes,love stories