To date, 2009s best-selling book at the Peninsula Bookman is Lynda Drews’ Run at Destruction, nosing out Gail Lukasik’s Death’s Door by a mere handful of copies. There is a lot of this year left, and both books continue to do well, so it really is a virtual tie. After Paul and Frances Burton’s Door County’s Islands releases (expected in the next few weeks), it will likely be a three-way competition for overall 2009 best-seller.
Run at Destruction is the story of the death of Pam Bulik. Bulik was a member of Green Bay’s burgeoning running community in the 1980s, and a friend and running partner of the author. Drews meticulously traces the story of the investigation of her death and subsequent trial of Bulik’s husband for her murder. Probably unlike any other work of true crime writing, the story is deeply involved in the community and culture of running.
Interlacing the investigative details of the story with details of the community of runners broadens the appeal of the book considerably. Sitting at the top of the recommended reading list of True Crime superstar Ann Rule doesn’t hurt either. Rule has called Run at Destruction “A must read for true-crime readers.” While the book is drawing national attention, most of the customers buying the book here in Fish Creek remember details of the story from the local papers and news broadcasts.
Customers commenting on the book have expressed some strong opinions about the outcome of the murder case, based on what they remember from the local news. Interestingly, Drews herself presents the work without any foregone conclusions. More interestingly still, when she was here in the store for a reading and book-signing, she explained that her own thoughts about the death her friend evolved over the course of writing the book.
