Michael McGarrity

Michael McGarrity (born 1940) is a New Mexican author and former law enforcement officer. He has written a dozen crime novels set in New Mexico and the American West trilogy, historical novels also set in New Mexico consisting of Hard Country, Backlands and The Last Ranch. As deputy sheriff of Santa Fe County he founded their Sex Crimes Unit.[1]

Michael McGarrity in 2009

Early life

McGarrity attended the University of New Mexico for three years and graduated from San Jose State University with a Bachelor's degree with distinction in English and Psychology. He earned a Master's degree in clinical social work from the University of Iowa and is a graduate of the New Mexico Law Enforcement academy.[2]

Career

In addition to law enforcement work, he has been an investigator and caseworker for the New Mexico Public Defender's Office.[2] He worked on rehabilitating prison programs after the New Mexico State Penitentiary riot in 1980. McGarrity has taught at several colleges and universities as well as the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy.[3] As a social worker[2] he published a number of articles in professional journals on a wide range of topics, ranging from therapy programs for children, to program assessment and evaluation, and drug treatment interventions.

Fiction writing

McGarrity's crime novels take place in modern New Mexico, with law enforcement officer Kevin Kerney as the protagonist. The settings are vividly evoked[4] and range from the Tularosa Basin and Lincoln County to Hermit's Peak, although many take place in Santa Fe. "Hard Country," "Backlands," and "The Last Ranch" form a sweeping trilogy tracing the Kerney family's history in New Mexico from 1875 through the end of the Vietnam War. A ground breaking prequel trilogy, all three books are set on the Tularosa Basin of south central New Mexico.

Awards

McGarrity has been nominated three times for the Western Writers of America Spur Award for Best Western Novel as well as an Anthony Award for his debut novel, Tularosa.

He has received the following awards:

  • New Mexico Social Worker of the Year, 1980[5]
  • Santa Fe's Police Officer of the Year, 1987[5]
  • New Mexico Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts — Literature, 2004[5][6]
  • Santa Fe Mayor's Award for Excellence in the Arts - Literature, 2015
  • Frank Waters Exemplary Literary Achievement Award, 2015

Bibliography

Kevin Kerney series

American West Trilogy books
  • Hard Country (2012)
  • Backlands (2014)
  • The Last Ranch (2016)

References
  1. Cline, Lynn (May 2, 1997). "McGarrity steals time to become crime writer: Drawing from true-life experiences". The Santa Fe New Mexican: Pasatiempo. p. 38.
  2. Fauntleroy, Gussle (1995) "Public Works: State worker hits big time with sale of 2 novels" The Santa Fe New Mexican p. A-6, col. 1
  3. Mcguire, Ginger (18 January 2006) "Writing from Experience Works for Mcgarrity" The Santa Fe New Mexican Eldorado Section, page EL-1
  4. Hillerman, Anne (11 May 1997) "Books' Settings More Than Background" The Albuquerque Journal (New Mexico), page 3
  5. Mcguire, Ginger (18 January 2006) "Writing from Experience Works for Mcgarrity" The Santa Fe New Mexican Eldorado Section, page EL-3
  6. Pasatiempo Staff (17 September 2004) "Governor's Awards - 2004" The Santa Fe New Mexican: Pasatiempo, page P-4
  7. Cline, Lynn (15 June 1997) "'Mexican Hat' provides some exciting moments" Santa Fe New Mexican Focus Section, page E-3
  8. Pate, Nancy (18 May 1997) "Hat Trick" The Augusta Chronicle (Georgia), Your Life Section, page E-9
  9. Booklist 94(16): (15 April 1998)
  10. Library Journal 123(9): (15 May 1998)
  11. The New York Times Book Review 103(25) (21 June 1998)
  12. England, Terry (13 June1999) "Mystery writer in the spell of the land" The Santa Fe New Mexican Outlook Section, page F-2
  13. Booklist 97(19-20): (1, 15 June 2001)
  14. Library Journal 126(12) (July 2001)
  15. Booklist 98(17): (1 May 2002)
  16. Library Journal 127(10): (1 June 2002)
  17. Helfand, Michael (28 September 2003) "McGarrity's Bad Guys Make Things Interesting for the Good Guys" Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania), Arts & Entertainment Section, page B-5
  18. Coale, Sam (28 September 2003) "Serial killer manages to stay one step ahead of the law" Providence Journal-Bulletin (Rhode Island), Arts Section, page M-07
  19. Schneider, Wolf (22 August 2004) "McGarrity Expands His Turf to California" The Santa Fe New Mexican Books Section, page F-7
  20. Booklist 100(22): (Aug. 2004)
  21. Booklist 102(7) (1 December 2005)
  22. Booklist 102(12) (15 February 2006)
  23. Publishers Weekly 252(46): (21 November 2007), p.29
  24. Booklist 104(4) (15 October 2007), p.35
  25. Publishers Weekly 254(47): (26 November 2007), p.30

Further reading
  • Duval, Linda (29 July 1998) "Author Michael McGarrity says "perseverance, luck and talent" bring success to writers" The Gazette (Colorado Springs), Entertainment News Section
  • "McGarrity, Michael". Contemporary Authors. 202. Gale Group. 2003. pp. 236–238.
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