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VJ Books Presents Author Sara Paretsky!

Sara ParetskySara Paretsky is the award-winning creator of the V I Warshawski detective novels. When Sara introduced V I in Indemnity Only in 1982, she revolutionized the mystery novel. By creating a female investigator who uses her wits as well as her fists, Sara challenged a genre in which women were traditionally either vamps or victims.

Sara grew up in rural Kansas where she attended a two-room school. She continues to believe the high point of her life came at the age of twelve when she was picked to play third base for the Kaw Valley District 95 baseball team.

Sara first came to Chicago in 1966 to do community service work in the same neighborhood where Martin Luther King was organizing. It was a time of fierce passions in the city and in the country as people fought over racial justice, the rights and wrongs of the war in Vietnam, and women's rights. Sara has always felt that that summer changed her life forever, and when she finished her undergraduate degree at the University of Kansas, she came back to make Chicago her home. Some of the history of that summer is recounted in her essay collection, Writing in an Age of Silence.

In other academic ventures, Sara received a PhD in American History and an MBA from the University of Chicago. In 1976, she married physics professor Courtenay Wright. The two live in the city of Chicago with their wonder dog Callie. Their lives are made brighter by their adored granddaughter, Maia.

She founded Sisters in Crime in 1986 to support women readers and writers in the mystery world. To give back to the community, Paretsky established the Sara and Two C-Dogs Foundation, which primarily supports girls and women in the arts, letters, and sciences. She has endowed several scholarships at the University of Kansas, and has mentored students in Chicago's inner city schools. She serves on the advisory boards of Literature for All of Us, a literacy group for teen moms, and Thresholds, which serves Chicago's mentally-ill homeless.

Sara has received numerous awards, including the Diamond Dagger for Lifetime achievement from the British Crime Writers Association, the Gold Dagger for best novel for her book Blacklist, and the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters from several different universities. Sara's books have been translated into almost thirty languages.

Like her fictional detective, Paretsky lives and dies with the Cubs, runs Chicago's lakefront with her golden retriever, and loves to sing, taking part in community musicals. Paretsky lives on Chicago's south side with her husband, a member of the University of Chicago's Fermi Institute.

Sara Paretskky Book List and Awards
Her website: www.saraparetsky.com
Similar authors: Linda Barnes, Edna Buchanan, Sue Grafton, Jamie Freveletti
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Listen to Interviews

Overboard
Signed First Edition

Overboard by Sara Paretsky

Shell Game
Signed First Edition

Shell Game by Sara Paretsky

Fallout
Signed First Edition

Fallout by Sara Paretsky

Brush Back
Signed First Edition

Brush Back by Sara Paretsky

Critical Mass
Signed First Edition

Critical Mass by Sara Paretsky

Body Work
Signed First Edition

Body Work by Sara Paretsky
BlogTalkRadio Interviews

Click Here to Listen to Roger Nichols Interview Sara Paretsky about Fallout

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Sara Paretsky Bibliography


V.I. Warshawski Series

  1. Indemnity Only - 1982
  2. Deadlock - 1984
  3. Killing Orders - 1985
  4. Bitter Medicine - 1987
  5. Blood Shot - 1988
  6. Burn Marks - 1990
  7. Guardian Angel - 1992
  8. Tunnel Vision - 1994
  9. Hard Time - 1999
  10. Total Recall - 2001
  11. Blacklist - 2003
  12. Fire Sale - 2005
  13. Hardball - 2009
  14. Body Work - 2010
  15. Breakdown - 2012
  16. Critical Mass - 2013
  17. Brush Back - 2015
  18. Fallout - 2017
  19. Shell Game - 2018
  20. Dead Land - 2020
  21. Overboard - 2022

Other Novels

  • Windy City Blues - 1991
  • Wildcat - 2017
  • Death on the Edge - 2018

Sara Paretsky Awards

  • Cartier Diamond Dagger
  • MWA Grand Master
  • Harold Washington Literary Award
  • Gold Dagger for Blacklist


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