Acclaimed Third Novel by Local Author Tommy Hays to be Published in Paperback

“The Pleasure Was Mine,” the acclaimed novel by local author and UNC Asheville’s Great Smokies Writing Program Director Tommy Hays, will get a new life as a paperback this spring. Published by St. Martin’s Griffin, the novel will be available in bookstores March 3.          

“The Pleasure Was Mine” is the story of three men: Prate Marshbanks, his grown son Newell, and his nine-year-old grandson Jackson – as they come to terms with the fading of Irene, the heart and center of the family. Set in Greenville, S.C. and Western North Carolina, the book is narrated by Prate, a prickly house painter who retires to care for Irene, his beloved wife who suffers from Alzheimer’s and had to be admitted to a nursing home. As Prate adjusts to these life changes, Newell, a recently widowed artist, needs to spend the summer at Penland School of Crafts. He leaves Jackson, his reticent, bookish son, with Prate for the summer. Prate finds himself in the uncomfortable position of having to finally get to know his moody grandson, who insists on going with Prate to the nursing home every day and maintaining the very strong connection with his grandmother. 

Kirkus Reviews gave the novel a starred review, calling it “an intimate, loving portrait of a dreaded disease’s devastating effects.” The book is “colloquial in tone, braced by its narrator’s stoic, plainspoken candor. Hays’ latest outing feels timely and true.”

A number of readings and book signings are planned. Upcoming dates include 3 p.m. Sunday, March 12, at the Marlboro Arts Council in Bennetsville, S.C.; 3 p.m. Saturday, March 18, at the Madison County Public Library in Marshall; and 2 p.m. March 25 at the South Buncombe Library in Arden. More information and a complete listing of events are available at www.tommyhays.com.

Hays is the author of two other novels, “Sam’s Crossing” and “In the Family Way,” which was a selection of the Book-of-the-Month Club and won the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. He is director of the Great Smokies Writing Program, a consortium of Western North Carolina writers and UNC Asheville. Hays is also the director of creative writing for the Academy at the South Carolina Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities. He reviews books for The Atlanta Constitution, is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and is a frequent contributor to Our State magazine. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Furman University and a master’s of fine arts degree in creative writing from Warren Wilson. He lives in Asheville with his wife and two children.

Media Contacts:

• Tommy Hays, Great Smokes Writing Program Director, 828/254-1389
• Jill Yarnall, UNC Asheville Public Information Assistant Director, 828/251-6526