Fairfield's Auction by Betty Jean Craige

Dr. Betty Jean Craige has published books in the fields of Spanish poetry, modern literature, history of ideas, politics, ecology, and art. She is a scholar, a translator, a teacher, and a novelist.

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About the Book

On a cold winter evening in the small mountain town of Witherston, Georgia, antique dealer Hempton Fairfield auctions off rare Cherokee artifacts, Appalachian antiques, and a young African Grey parrot. Late that night, a blizzard stops traffic for a three-mile stretch of the Witherston Highway, prohibiting anyone’s arrival or departure and stranding an eighteen-wheel semi full of chickens. The next morning two bodies are discovered in the snow, the chickens are running free, and the parrot is missing, leaving a number of unanswered questions. What happened? Where’s the parrot? How did the chickens escape the stranded truck? Who rightfully owns the remnants of the thousand-year-old Cherokee civilization? Who killed the two men? And, most importantly, how many more bodies will turn up before the killer is caught?

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Keep reading for an interview with the author:

Why did you decide to be a writer?

I had published seventeen academic books when I retired from the University of Georgia. I had always loved mysteries, so I wrote my first "Witherston Murder Mystery," titled DOWNSTREAM, and had so much fun I decided to write a series. FAIRFIELD'S AUCTION is #2.

Do you have a "day job"? If so, what do you do?

For four decades I was a professor of Comparative Literature at the University of Georgia.

What genres do you write?

These days, I write fiction (murder mysteries). I am working on a more serious novel now.

What inspires you to write?

I can't NOT write. When I was in elementary school and high school I wrote funny poems to amuse my friends. Now I'm writing novels to entertain my readers. I want to amuse and entertain readers while leading them to think about serious issues.

What authors/books have most influenced you?

Daniel Quinn, Barbara Kingsolver

If you could choose an author to be your mentor, who would it be?

My mentor was Eugene Odum, often called "Father of Ecosystem Ecology," whose biography I wrote. Gene Odum, a dear friend of mine, showed me how to understand issues as interactive parts of a larger system. He died in 2002, at the age of 89, having taught (through his many books) succeeding generations of students the world over to understand nature in terms of ecosystems. He turned me into an environmentalist.

What is the best compliment you've ever received as an author?

"Your book made me laugh out loud."

What is the best writing advice you've ever received?

"Write what you want to learn about."

What do you enjoy doing aside from writing?

Talking with Cosmo, my very talkative African Grey parrot; cooking; traveling; having dinner parties; learning about fine wine; collecting art; having more dinner parties; drinking fine wine with friends

What are you working on now?

I am working on a serious novel about germline gene therapy for humans.