Episode 50: Sara Paretsky

An interview with Sara Paretsky, a best-selling mystery writer who was in town in March to speak at a Peoria Reads program.

Born and raised in the Midwest, Sara Paretsky's books have been published in 25 countries and translated into nearly 30 languages. Early mentoring by her grandparents fostered Sara's social conscience and interest in social injustices. The daughter of a University of Kansas microbiologist father and a mother who almost attended medical school, Sara and her family, including four brothers, Sara lived in rural Kansas.

Sara holds Honorary Doctor of Letters degrees from several colleges and universities. She was named the Ms. Magazine 1987 Woman of the Year and was awarded The Diamond Dagger of Lifetime Achievement award by the British Crime Writers' Association. Her novel, Blacklist, received The Gold Dagger award for best novel. Sara's plots -- centered on murder, crime concealment, businesses and confrontation -- offer delicious mystery rich in detail and local color.

Sara recalls her life in Chicago's Hyde Park, her educational career and her path as a life insurance marketing manager to the beginning of her writing. One book, V.I. Warshawski, became a movie starring Kathleen Turner as a private detective.