By Anjelica Michael
Every year for the past two decades authors have gathered in Charlottesville to talk about their books and share them with the public at the Virginia Festival of the Book.
Among them will be Fredericksburg resident John M. Wills, a retired FBI agent, Quantico instructor and former Chicago police officer. He’s also a successful author, penning over 150 books and articles, and editor, writing book reviews for New York Journal of Books. His books including a mystery thriller series called “Chicago Warriors”. Not a newcomer to the festival rounds, Wills will discuss his latest tome, “Women Warriors: Stories from the Thin Blue Line.”
Wills interviewed several women in the law enforcement, compiling their stories into a volume of the police officer’s experience. These untold stories offer insight into world of women in law enforcement.
“From a dispatcher on the radio trying to remain calm and do her job while her husband is involved in a gun battle, to a desperate search for a missing child during a frightening storm, to a courageous lone officer staring down the barrel of a gun inside a crowded department store, the tales in this book will have your pulse racing.” – Kevin Parker of City Biz List
“… this book is not just about women in uniform. While Women Warriors thoroughly examines the issues that a woman faces while doing the job, in a more expansive sense, it also gives a unique behind-the-scenes glimpse of what it is like on a day-to-day basis to put on the uniform and work as a law-enforcement officer—regardless of gender.” – Alan Jacobson at New York Journal of Books
He will take part in an author panel called “Why We Write,What We Write”on March 19 and a book signing at the Omni Hotel on March 22 which will include his successful novel from last year entitled “The Year Without Christmas.” Other authors at the festival include David Baldacci, Alice Hoffman, Lois Lowry, Lisa Scottoline, Lee Smith, Rita Mae Brown, Denise Kiernan, Patricia Smith, Kwame Alexander, Gary Gallagher, Daniel Pink and Sonia Manzano.
20th Annual Virginia Festival of the Book
March 19-23 2014
Charlottesville (event locations vary)
FREE