Medawar, Mardi Oakley

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Medawar, Mardi Oakley

PERSONAL:

Born in Olla, LA. Education: Attended San Diego State University.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Red Cliff Chippewa Reservation, WI.

CAREER:

Writer, artist, historian.

MEMBER:

Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers, Western Writers, Sisters in Crime.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Medicine Pipe Bearer's Award, best first western novel, 1994, for People of the Whistling Waters; Prose Fiction Writer of the Year Award, Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers, 1998, for Death at Rainy Mountain.

WRITINGS:

NOVELS

People of the Whistling Waters, Affiliated Writers of America (Encampment, WY), 1993.

Remembering the Osage Kid, Bantam (New York, NY), 1997.

Murder on the Red Cliff Rez, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2002.

"TAY-BODAL" MYSTERY SERIES

Death at Rainy Mountain, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1996.

Witch of the Palo Duro, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1997.

Murder at Medicine Lodge, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 1999.

The Ft. Larned Incident, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2000.

SIDELIGHTS:

Mardi Oakley Medawar's novels are set in various places and historical eras, but all of them give readers some flavor of Native American life. Her first book, People of the Whistling Waters, is a multigenerational saga that depicted the Crow tribe during the late 1800s. The central character is Egbert Higgins, born to white settlers in Montana in 1854 but eventually raised among the Crow people. Egbert and his descendants interact with various historical characters, including U.S. General George Custer and Native American leader Crazy Horse. Incorporating some of the oral history of the Crow, the author illustrates the sweeping societal changes that undercut the Native American way of life. Her book is "expansive," according to a Publishers Weekly reviewer.

Medawar's next book, Death at Rainy Mountain, is a mystery set in the American West during the post-Civil War era. It is narrated by a member of the Kiowa tribe named Tay-bodal. He is something of a loner, interested in healing with herbs, and not much involved with tribal councils or war parties. When a likely candidate for the position of tribal chief is murdered, however, Tay-bodal's knowledge of medicine and the human body draw him into the case. Emily Melton, a contributor to Booklist, praised this book as a "beautifully written, life-affirming, heartwarming story full of adventure, humor, and tears."

Tay-bodal is featured in other books, including Witch of the Palo Duro, Murder at Medicine Lodge, and The Ft. Larned Incident. These stories see Tay-bodal marry and take part in some of the key events in the history of the American West. His scientific interest in the human body is at odds with the traditions of his tribe, but it serves him well as he acts as both detective and healer. In Murder at the Medicine Lodge, Tay-bodal must clear the name of Kiowa chief White Bear after a U.S. soldier is murdered during treaty talks. In The Ft. Larned Incident, Tay-bodal extracts a confession from a suspected murder, but is troubled by a sense that something about it was not right. Fifty years later, the truth about the crime begins to surface, in a mystery that is infused with "dry, sometimes raucous humor," and which gives readers a "fascinating" look at Native American history, according to John Rowen in Booklist.

Medawar moves from historical to contemporary mystery in a new series that begins with Murder on the Red Cliff Rez. It is set on the Red Cliffs Chippewa reservation in northern Wisconsin, where Medawar lives. The sleuth in this murder mystery is Karen Charboneau, a woman known both for her work in ceramics and her prowess as a tracker. Very modern yet also deeply rooted in the ancient traditions of her people, Karen investigates the murder of a lawyer who was disliked by many people, for many reasons. Karen, who is romantically involved with the chief of the tribal police force, is depicted as stubborn and independent. A Publishers Weekly reviewer called the new series "promising."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Armchair Detective, fall, 1996, Laurence Coven, review of Death at Rainy Mountain, p. 489.

Booklist, July, 1996, Emily Melton, review of Death at Rainy Mountain, p. 1810; September 15, 1997, John Rowen, review of Witch of the Palo Duro, p. 214; February 1, 1999, John Rowen and Jack Helbig, review of Murder at Medicine Lodge, p. 965; August, 2000, John Rowen, review of The Ft. Larned Incident, p. 2121.

Drood Review of Mystery, July, 2002, review of Murder on the Red Cliff Rez, p. 13.

Kirkus Reviews, June 1, 1996, review of Death at Rainy Mountain, p. 785; October 1, 1997, review of Witch of the Palo Duro, p. 1489; January 15, 1999, review of Murder at Medicine Lodge, p. 108; August 1, 2000, review of The Ft. Larned Incident, p. 1079; March 15, 2002, review of Murder on the Red Cliff Rez, p. 371.

Kliatt, July, 1997, Elaine S. Patterson, review of People of the Whistling Waters, pp. 9-10; January, 1998, Elaine S. Patterson, review of Remembering the Osage Kid, pp. 10-11.

Library Journal, November 1, 1997, Rex E. Klett, review of Witch of the Palo Duro, p. 119; March 1, 1999, Rex E. Klett, review of Murder at Medicine Lodge, p. 113; August 1, 2000, Rex E. Klett, review of The Ft. Larned Incident, p. 166; May 1, 2002, Rex E. Klett, review of Murder on the Red Cliff Rez, p. 139.

Publishers Weekly, July 5, 1993, review of People of the Whistling Waters, p. 63; July 1, 1996, review of Death at Rainy Mountain, p. 46; September 22, 1997, review of Witch of the Palo Duro, p. 75; February 22, 1999, review of Murder at Medicine Lodge, p. 69; June 26, 2000, review of The Ft. Larned Incident, p. 54; May 20, 2002, review of Murder on the Red Cliff Rez, p. 50.

School Library Journal, April, 1998, Pam Johnson, review of Witch of the Palo Duro, pp. 158-159.