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'Murder times three': Urk door Amerikaanse ogen
English translation
Nieuws op Urk, woensdag 18 januari 2006
Urk wordt opgeschrikt door drie brute moorden. De bevolking van het kleine dorpje aan de Noordzee is in shock. Twee jonge Amerikaanse leraressen maken het allemaal van dichtbij mee en spelen een beslissende rol in de oplossing van het mysterie. Het zijn de belangrijkste ingrediënten van 'Murder times three', een detectiveroman van de Amerikaanse schrijfster Jan Frazier.
Het is het vierde boek van Jan Frazier, een universiteitsdocente Engels uit het stadje Pekin in de staat Illinois, 200 kilometer ten zuidwesten van Chicago. Reizen staat centraal in haar boeken. "Op reis gaan is de beste manier om iets te leren", is haar vaste overtuiging. De avonturen waarover Frazier schrijft spelen zich daarom voornamelijk af in Europa. Nederland, waar ze in de jaren zeventig een tijdje woonde, komt daarbij vaak aan bod. En de jong volwassenen waarvoor ze schrijft moeten er ook iets van opsteken. Ze weeft daarom cultuur door de verhalen heen en vertelt over de geschiedenis van de oude wereld. Over de Tweede Wereldoorlog bijvoorbeeld: "Ik ben een absolute Anne Frank freak. Een eerder boek gaat daarover en ook in mijn laatste roman komt ze even aan bod."
The full Dutch text of this article can be read at Nieuws op Urk.
"Murder Times Three": Urk seen through the eyes of an American
Nieuws op Urk, Wednesday, January 18, 2006, translation by Jan Frazier
Urk was the scene for three brutal murders. The people of the small village on the North Sea were in shock. Two young American teachers played a decisive role in solving the mysteries. The most interesting ingredient of "Murder Times Three" is that the writer and detective of the novel is an American author, Jan Frazier.
It is the fourth book of Jan Frazier, a university professor teaching English. She lives in Pekin, Illinois, 200 kilometers (150 miles) southwest of Chicago. Traveling is a central theme in her books. "Travel is the best way to learn" is Frazier’s conviction. The adventures of which Frazier writes mostly take place in Europe. She visits The Netherlands, where she lived during the 1970s, as often as possible. She incorporates into her stories the culture and the history of the Old World. Concerning WWII, Frazier says: "I’m an absolute Anne Frank freak. In an earlier novel, I wrote about the trials of the war."
"Pretty Village!"
Every year Frazier visits Europe. During the 1990s, she made her first trip to Urk. "We rented a room in a house next to the lighthouse. We immediately loved it. What a pretty little village! It was so much different than home. Pekin lies in the countryside that is the ‘bread basket’ of America. Cornfields are everywhere. So you can understand that I couldn’t believe my eyes when we were in Urk." A year later, Frazier returned. She again stayed in the house near the lighthouse, and slowly the idea ripened for the thriller novel transpiring in Urk. And so last year "Murder Times Three" was released in the United States and can also be bought internationally on Amazon. Last week the author was for the third time in Urk. Het Urkerland newspaper found out that she was coming to Europe and an e-mail was sent requesting an interview. Paris, Volendam, and Amsterdam were all on her itinerary, and gladly she stopped again in Urk. "I was happy to come to Urk to show my friends the beautiful village."
Bicycle Bells
"Murder Times Three" is seen through the eyes of an America. The people in the novel live in small houses surrounded by tulips and have bicycle bells resounding everywhere. Jan Frazier says, "Americans find it interesting to read about the small Dutch villages, which are so much different than our towns at home. We sometimes have a certain picture in our minds about Europe which might be exaggerated." The novelist created the characters of Ryne van Beek and Nollie van Opdorp and also the train station in Urk, plus the cinema and hotel. "It is necessary for a novelist to incorporate imaginative ideas."
The novel is a real "whodunit," with three murders as the central theme. The main character is adopted. She was born in The Netherlands but was adopted by an American family. All that she has is half a birth medallion (which is typically Dutch). This is enough for the main characters to become entangled in a web of enigmatic mysteries and murder.
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