Check out our interview with Peggy Townsend, the author of "The Botanist’s Assistant."
What was your inspiration behind your most recent book?
I wanted to write a big-hearted mystery about a middle-aged woman who is labeled eccentric for her dedication to order, honesty, and her job as a science lab assistant. I wanted to make her ungainly but unstoppable. I wanted a mystery that needed to be solved, but I didn’t want serial killers and torturers and darkness. I also wanted to explore the fascinating science being done around plants right now. Their biological creativity is pretty amazing.
What does Reading Rainbow mean to you?
Reading Rainbow means reading with an open heart. It means being receptive to experiences that may not be your own but that crack you open to the world around you.
Why do you feel representation of a variety of people is so important when it comes to writing books?
Because having a variety of characters is what brings a book to life. In my career as a journalist, I’ve sat with politicians and heroes, with criminals and victims, with the rich and those who’d lost everything. I’ve met people who inspired me and people who didn’t. Each of them had a story and each of them gave me insight into a world I often didn’t know existed and I think that’s what makes life — and a book — interesting.
Tell us a little more about the book and why you decided to write it.
Margaret Finch is six-feet tall and big-boned with a plain face that people often describe as horse-like. Those at the university where she works dismiss her for what they see as eccentricities: her attention to detail, her strict schedules and tendency to tell the truth whether it’s wanted or not. But when there is an unexpected death on campus, those attributes turn out to make Margaret an excellent sleuth. With the help of an enigmatic night custodian, she unravels a tangle of clues to find the truth. Early reviewers have called "The Botanist’s Assistant" charming, clever and funny, which is exactly the kind of book I set out to write. I wanted to entertain while also doing a bit of educating and celebrating those who don’t always fit in.
What can fans expect from your book?
Fans can expect slightly off-beat characters, obsession, jealousy and a one-eyed cat.
What’s up next for you in the bookish world?
I’m working on a sequel to "The Botanist’s Assistant" but this one will be set in the Sonoran desert where there’s plenty of room for murder and mischief.
