ukslim's scrapbook
 Scrapbook
A Self-Absorbed Collection of all things In the Wind

This is where I stash odds and ends. The image to the left, by the way, is a page from an absolutely stunning scrapbook compiled by ukslim who has lots of quite brilliant images on Flickr.

hot off the press

The latest release from Barbara Fister, an academic librarian at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minn., is an understated crime-fiction gem. Conspicuously void of any explicit sexual acrobatics or stomach-churning violence, "In the Wind" is powered by a highly intelligent story line that underscores disturbing similarities between the counterintelligence practices of post-9/11America and those imposed during the Vietnam War era . . . Discerning fans of political mysteries and thrillers looking for a wildly thought-provoking whodunit should check out this surprisingly compelling read.

Paul Goat Allen, Chicago Tribune

Fister writes thoughtfully from Anni's perspective about the oppressed: Native Americans, easily intimidated new immigrants, people struggling with mental illness, and homeless derelicts written of by society. . . . In the Wind is a tough, engrossing story where the good guys can be the bad guys, and political passions from the Vietnam War and erosions of civil liberties under the Patriot Act come together with enough ambiguity to blur the lines. All in all, it makes one glad to know the underground is still alive.

Verna Suit, Mystery Scene Magazine

interviews and whatnot

I take the Page 99 Test, part of Marshal Zeringue's amazing Campaign for the American Reader (which also compiles interviews in a feat of inexaustable enthusiasm for books)

Author Snapshot in January Magazine in which I reveal (again) that I am an anarchist

Mysterious Musings interview with Julia Buckley

Once Upon a Crime interview with Lori Lake

Interview by Sandra Ruttan with Tom Piccirilli because we three are parents to triplets - books released on the same day

A nice preview of In the Wind in Express Milwaukee by someone who probably shares my politics.

what booksellers are saying

As in her brilliant 2002 debut (On Edge/Dell pbo), Fister, from the get-go, demonstrates her command for establishing strong characters. And Anni is a pistol. In one of the opening scenes, she is about to be confronted by two men on the street and proceeds to, well, beat the crap out of them. Turns out that they're feds who have been tailing her.
 
The reasons for the feds' interest launches her into investigating secrets deeply rooted and protected, involving the '70's American Indian Movement, an ice-cold murder of an FBI agent in 1972, and the heightened paranoia of post-9/11 surveillance. Set in Chicago and rural Minnesota, this is a book not to be missed.
Gary Schultz of Once Upon a Crime
Barbara's second mystery is excellent. Former cop and newly minted private detective Anni Koskinen takes an early morning phone call from a local priest. A woman is going to come to Anni for help. The woman at her door is known locally as a popular grandmotherly figure at the local parish. Unbeknownst to Anni and the community, Rosa is a wanted FBI fugitive - wanted of murdering an FBI while she was a member of a racial American Indian movement organization. That is just the first 20 pages. In the Wind is complex and engaging. I highly recommend it!
Terri of Booked for Murder


more reviews

Chicago PI Anni Koskinen investigates a case ranging from the Vietnam era to a current FBI manhunt in Fister's explosive follow-up to 2002's On Edge. . . .  Fister expertly brings the turbulent past into focus . . . The Windy City already has plenty of fictional PIs, but they'll have to make room for the gutsy and appealing Anni Koskinen.
Publisher's Weekly (4/14/08)
 

. . . Fister skillfully guides the reader through the past and present, all the while raising the stakes until the truth is revealed in an emotionally compelling resolution . . .  I'm sure that Fister will be compared to Sara Paretsky, with the two authors both centering their books on strong females working in Chicag. However, Fister doesn't come off second best in such a comparison and has created a work that is unique. Hightly recommended.
Maddy Van Hertbruggen, Reviewing the Evidence (5/12/08)

When I reviewed Barbara Fister's first book, ''On Edge,'' in 2002, I said ''Her writing has the kind of truth to it that comes from being smart and aware in a hard world, and this book, in addition to being a thrilling mystery, has plenty to say about our society." The same can be said of her second book, ''In the Wind''. . . It's a good read that balances admiration and cynicism about activists in today's world.

John Orr, San Jose Mercury News (6/15/08) Full review at Triviana.


". . . a powerful emerging voice in the mystery genre." (6/08)
Andrea Sisco, Armchair Interviews (6/08)

 June 2008