October 2015
Photo © Terrence McNally.
Amy Stewart is the award-winning author of six books on the perils and pleasures of the natural world, including four New York Times bestsellers, The Drunken Botanist, Wicked Bugs, Wicked Plants, and Flower Confidential. Stewart's newest book, her first novel, Girl Waits with Gun, will be part of a trilogy set in northern New Jersey. She lives in Eureka, California, with her husband Scott Brown. They own an antiquarian bookstore called Eureka Books and tend a flock of unruly hens in their backyard.
What are you reading? What's on your nightstand?
Well, I'm on book tour right now, and I can barely even remember what my nightstand looks like, much less what's on it! But in my travel bag I have a few new novels that I've been looking forward to, including Stephanie Clifford's Everybody Rise, Patrick DeWitt's Undermajordomo Minor (his last book, The Sisters Brothers, is one of my all-time favorite books), and Lauren Groff's Fates and Furies.
Where do you go to get inspired?
To my desk! I don't believe in inspiration. I believe in sitting down and getting the work done. Inspiration's going to have to come to me, not the other way around. If you read Elizabeth Gilbert's new book Big Magic you'll find that she and I are just about in perfect agreement on this subject
What's something that surprised you recently (in a good way)?
There has been something that has surprised me on book tour. I'm surprised that people have so many interesting ideas about my characters. I'm working on the next book in the series now, and at almost every event I do, I end up taking notes from my readers.
Where do you write?
My office is in the attic of our house in Eureka, California. It's a wonderful big drafty old space with very thick redwood plank floors and exposed beams. I'm getting homesick just thinking about it!
What/who makes you laugh? Why?
My chickens make me laugh. They're very talkative, and at night when I go out to lock up the chicken coop, I always say good-night to them, and they pretty much say good night back to me. It took me a long time to figure this out, but if you talk to a chicken, she will talk right back to you. They're very sociable like that.
Favorite fictional character ever?
Harriet the Spy. What are you working on? I'm working on the next installment of the Kopp sisters' adventures! I know quite a bit about what they did over a 15 year period, and I really want to tell the rest of their true story. The second book will be out in September 2016.
"A sheer delight to read and based on actual events, this debut historical mystery packs the unexpected, the unconventional, and a serendipitous humor into every chapter. Details from the historical record are accurately portrayed by villains and good guys alike, and readers will cross their fingers for the further adventures of Constance and Sheriff Heath."
—Booklist, ***Starred Review***
"Stewart has spun a fine, historically astute novel . . . The sisters’ personalities flower under Stewart’s pen, contributing happy notes of comedy to a terrifying situation . . . I, for one, would like to see her return to wield them again in further installments."
—New York Times Book Review
"In the summer of 1914 in rural New Jersey, the lives of Constance Kopp and her sisters take a dramatic turn. Aided by the local sheriff, the Kopp sisters defend their home while Constance unravels a web of Kaufman family secrets and reckons with her own. In her engaging first novel, Stewart (The Drunken Botanist) draws from the true story of the Kopp sisters (Constance became one of the country's first female deputy sheriffs) and creates a welcome addition to the genre of the unconventional female sleuth. Colorful, well-drawn characters come to life on the page, and historical details are woven tightly into the narrative. The satisfying conclusion sets up an opening for future Constance Kopp novels. VERDICT Historical fiction fans and followers of Rhys Bowen's "Molly Murphy" mysteries and Victoria Thompson's "Gaslight Mystery" series will delight in the eccentric and feisty Kopp women."
—Library Journal
"Hardened criminals are no match for pistol-packing spinster Constance Kopp and her redoubtable sisters in this hilarious and exciting period drama by bestseller Stewart (The Drunken Botanist)...A surprising Kopp family secret, a kidnapped baby, and other twists consistently ratchet up the stakes throughout, resulting in an exhilarating yarn."
—Publishers Weekly
Girl Waits with Gun by
From the New York Times best-selling author of The Drunken Botanist comes an enthralling novel based on the forgotten true story of one of the nation's first female deputy sheriffs. Constance Kopp doesn't quite fit the mold. She towers over most men, has no interest in marriage or domestic affairs, and has been isolated from the world since a family secret sent her and her sisters into hiding fifteen years ago. One day a belligerent and powerful silk factory owner runs down their buggy, and a dispute over damages turns into a war of bricks, bullets, and threats as he unleashes his gang on their family farm. When the sheriff enlists her help in convicting the men, Constance is forced to confront her past and defend her family -- and she does it in a way that few women of 1914 would have dared. "A smart, romping adventure, featuring some of the most memorable and powerful female characters I've seen in print for a long time. I loved every page as I followed the Kopp sisters through a too-good-to-be-true (but mostly true!) tale of violence, courage, stubbornness, and resourcefulness." -- Elizabeth Gilbert
The Drunken Botanist by
Sake began with a grain of rice. Scotch emerged from barley, tequila from agave, rum from sugarcane, bourbon from corn. Thirsty yet? In The Drunken Botanist, Amy Stewart explores the dizzying array of herbs, flowers, trees, fruits, and fungi that humans have, through ingenuity, inspiration, and sheer desperation, contrived to transform into alcohol over the centuries. Of all the extraordinary and obscure plants that have been fermented and distilled, a few are dangerous, some are downright bizarre, and one is as ancient as dinosaurs--but each represents a unique cultural contribution to our global drinking traditions and our history. This fascinating concoction of biology, chemistry, history, etymology, and mixology--with more than fifty drink recipes and growing tips for gardeners--will make you the most popular guest at any cocktail party.
Wicked Bugs by
In this darkly comical look at the sinister side of our relationship with the natural world, Stewart has tracked down over one hundred of our worst entomological foes--creatures that infest, infect, and generally wreak havoc on human affairs. From the world's most painful hornet, to the flies that transmit deadly diseases, to millipedes that stop traffic, to the "bookworms" that devour libraries, to the Japanese beetles munching on your roses, Wicked Bugs delves into the extraordinary powers of six- and eight-legged creatures. With wit, style, and exacting research, Stewart has uncovered the most terrifying and titillating stories of bugs gone wild. It's an A to Z of insect enemies, interspersed with sections that explore bugs with kinky sex lives ("She's Just Not That Into You"), creatures lurking in the cupboard ("Fear No Weevil"), insects eating your tomatoes ("Gardener's Dirty Dozen"), and phobias that feed our (sometimes) irrational responses to bugs ("Have No Fear"). Intricate and strangely beautiful etchings and drawings by Briony Morrow-Cribbs capture diabolical bugs of all shapes and sizes in this mixture of history, science, murder, and intrigue that begins--but doesn't end--in your own backyard
