Robert Woolsey

Sitka, Alaska (2008-04-21) Sitka resident and Alaska Writer Laureate John Straley’s newest novel will be on store shelves in May.
“The Big Both Ways” is Straley’s seventh book, and his first departure from contemporary crime fiction. Gone are down-and-out detective Cecil Younger and the rest of the cast who have populated Straley’s earlier stories set in modern Southeast Alaska. Instead Straley locates his noir thriller on the troubled streets of Everett and Seattle circa 1935, as the pre-World War II labor movement comes to a head. The protagonists make their getaway to Southeast Alaska in a rowing dory, inspired by Bob DeArmond's real life journey.