Publishing this book under the name Deborah Brown, Grace Gibbons uses her legal name for her other work. She has published short fiction, humor, and journalism, and her play, Cleaning Up When Friends Visit was produced in a New York City new‑play festival during Covid. She has also contributed to academic work, notably co‑authoring with Jane Thierfeld Brown, From Access to Equity: Equalizing Educational Opportunities for Women with Disabilities.
Grace grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh. She also holds a master’s degree in educational psychology from Marist University and an MFA in Creative Writing from Mississippi University for Women.
She has cycled through many jobs in fields ranging from social services to newspapers, and book publishing to education. For twenty years, she taught college writing to aspiring chefs, bakers, and hospitality professionals at The Culinary Institute of America.
She is now embarking on new adventures, preparing to join AmeriCorps to foster literacy development in preschool children. She is also working toward a long‑time goal of becoming a licensed mental health counselor.
Grace is a vegan who cares deeply about Earth and all who share it. She lives in New York’s beautiful Hudson Valley with her husband and their two dogs, Sophie and Sam. Learn more at https://www.gracegibbonswrites.com/.
Watch for Deborah’s memoir, Illegitimate, due for release on September 7th, 2027.
Description:
A memoir set between 1958 and 1964 in a housing project in Pittsburgh, Illegitimate explores the inner life of a child living a small life, when women not only needed a man for credit, but also for credibility. Abortion was illegal, single mothers were outcasts and their children were bastards. Debby doesn’t understand that she is illegitimate because her mother has created a narrative that explains their situation. Although she does not know her social status as the bastard child of a single mother, she senses it in every aspect of her life.