Jim Buie

"Clearly Lillian Buie is the teacher we all needed in school, the philosopher we all needed next door. Coincidentally, she was a student of mine in the 1980s, and my life is richer because of it. This book gives us a fair representation of Lillian and thus brings to us her take on life, a way of seeing the world that is rare and fresh as a warm day in early winter, or snow in early spring. "Lillian became a part of all who knew her, and if you didn¹t know her, then this book is for you." -- Clyde Edgerton, author of seven critically-acclaimed Southern novels, including "Raney," "Walking Across Egypt," and "Lunch at the Piccadilly." Like nearly every high school English teacher in America, Lillian Buie taught Thornton Wilder's "Our Town," and tried to open her students' eyes to the ways that literature resembles life, and that life resembles literature and art. Now, in this collection of essays compiled and edited by her son Jim from letters, journal entries, and short stories, North Carolina's English Teacher of the Year for 1979 looks back on her own life, finding similarities to "Our Town." Union County, N.C. where she grew up, and Scotland County, N.C. where she lived in the same house for sixty years, provided windows on the world and into the human condition. At the heart of her book is her description of teaching as a demanding, yet enormously rewarding profession, and of her love for and dedication to her students. Her words are enriched by excerpts from dozens of letters from former students, friends and relatives, recalling the influence this "teacher of our town" had on their lives. The conversations that this book sparks will continue online at www.lillianbuie.com. Forever the English teacher, Mrs. Buie would be delighted to see you sharing your thoughts with fellow readers.