The First Two Thirds, or How Jeanne Finally Unpacked Her Bags and Settled Down

It was the sixties. After briefly attending Eastern Michigan, Wayne State and Wilmington College in Ohio, Jeanne hopped in a car one summer (an Austin America that only ran in dry weather) and moved to San Francisco.

During the next eight years, she lived a life of poetry. Salons with artists and writers. Good friends. Broken relationships. Her first book “An Unzipped Dress’ (poetry) was published in 1975 by Harold Graves’ Golden Mountain Press. The same year she met Michael Haynes in Mexico, her partner for life, through a series of unbelievable coincidences.

Michael and Jeanne lived in California, Colorado, South Texas, and finally returned to Detroit, where they both were born, in 1980. This was supposed to be only for four years. Jeanne, however, is terrible at math and they haven’t left yet. Their four children, Alex, Sosha, Lilya and Stephen, have grown and flown but Jeanne and Michael still live in Michigan with Gracie, an elegant silver Standard Poodle.

Her second novel “No Ordinary Jew” is a work in progress.  Set in Detroit again, it deals with the 20th century immigrant community and with the difficulties and consequences of assimilation. 

Her second story collection “Me and Betty White” is looking for a home.