Are you looking for an interesting event for March? Women’s History Month is right around the corner. This year, how about doing something a little different, a little subversive, and yes, maybe a bit vicariously dangerous, at your library? If I’ve been to your library, you already know I’m a NYT bestselling, Michigan Notable author, known for my true crime books and memoir. And, if I’ve been to your library, you already know I like to get my research in front of an audience and see what happens. If I haven’t been to your library, why not? (Ask your colleagues — I always do my best to draw a crowd and put on a good event.) With that in mind, I’ve put together a new library talk giving women their due, but with my signature spin. Here are the specifics: Title: “Not All Sugar & Spice: Bad Women of the Mitten” Description: If, “Equal Means Equal,” then some Michigan women have certainly proved that, and in the darkest of ways. For example, in 1950, when Martha Beck was arrested for a triple murder outside Grand Rapids, she called her life “a love story,” just before being extradited to face New York’s electric chair. In 1988 Gwen Graham and Cathy Wood were arrested for killing five patients at a nursing home. Wood cut a deal and is up for parole; Graham got five life sentences, but is the right woman really behind bars forever? In 1970, Bernardine Dorhn became one of only a handful of women to break into a group previously 98% male: The FBI’s Most Wanted List. Dorhn was a leader of the radical group, the Weather Underground, charged in a Michigan bombing plot. In 1980, she surrendered, and served a reduced sentence. Today, she’s a law professor. What makes a good Michigan woman turn bad?This talk and powerpoint slide show takes a look at these women criminals and others (including Debbie from Wicked Takes the Witness Stand, and Stella, Isadore’s Secret), detailing their backgrounds, the motives for their crimes, and their just (or not) punishments. Followed by a Q&A. Total time, flexible but approximately 1.5 - 2 hours. Cost: $500, all inclusive. Availability: Several weekend and evening dates between February 9 and April 30, 2018. Interested? Just email me some possible dates. All my best, Mardi Link www.mardilink.com<http://www.mardilink.com/><http://www.mardilink.com<http://www.mardilink.com/>> Mary Barker, Director Pentwater Township Library 402 E. Park Street Pentwater, MI 49449-7710 231 869-8581