The Murder of Medicine Bear is the story of an Alberta river and of the people who live near its banks. In her most ambitious work to date, Haley interweaves the lives of three generations of natives and whites. Both communities reside in the shadow of an ever-looming mega-project which threatens to dam the river and either save or destroy a way of life, depending on your perspective. At the centre of the novel is the unexpected reunion of an eccentric young band chief, Tim Steen, with his sister, Marina, from whom he was estranged as a child after the brutal murder of their mother. Moving forward and backward in time, Haley paints a compassionate portrait of reservation life and of the complex, sometimes tragic interrelationships between whites and natives.

Susan Haley’s first two novels, A Nest of Singing Birds and Getting Married in Buffalo Jump, were made into movies for CBC-TV. Most recently she has published The Complaints Department (2000), Maggie's Family (2002) and The Murder of Medicine Bear (2003). Haley lived in Fort Norman, Northwest Territories, for 15 years where she ran a charter airline with her partner. Haley now lives in Black River, Nova Scotia.

Susan Haley's profile page

“Susan Haley has written her best novel yet. The Murder of Medicine Bear is a triumph for a writer committed to the reflection of white and Native Canadians.” Wendy Elliott, The Advertiser