Footprints in the Snow
A Non-Fiction Review by James M. Fisher
I was happy to see in the author’s acknowledgements that she was familiar with the 2014 book, The Lynching of Peter Wheeler by Debra Komar, a forensic anthropologist who applied her skills to the historical crime of the murder of Annie Kempton in Bear River, Nova Scotia in 1896. When I first received my review copy of Footprints in the Snow, I wondered why Laura Churchill Duke decided to retell the story. She is an excellent investigator of historical crimes, but as she doesn’t have Ms. Komar’s skillset, I was curious, to say the least. I enjoyed her past books, Two Crows Sorrow and Rooted in Deception, all published by Moose House Publications.
Ms. Churchill Duke has taken a different tack to Annie and Peter’s story. She has written it as a “historical, creative, non-fiction” story, to use her words from her About the Book section at the back of Footprints in the Snow. Much of the dialogue was invented as well as some characters. Name changes and places were altered for the story, too she informs us. Nevertheless, she has stuck to what facts and testimony exist in telling about the murder of young Annie Kempton in her home and the subsequent arrest, trial and hanging of Peter Wheeler for the crime.
Of course, in 1896, forensic science was almost unheard of. Fingerprint analysis, DNA and even blood typing have not yet been discovered. During the trial, it was brought out that differentiation between animal and human blood was impossible, let alone the blood type. This made it difficult to determine if the few blood splatters on Peter Wheeler’s clothing were his, Annie’s or a rabbit’s as Wheeler claimed. Frustrating, from a modern-day point of view. Peter Wheeler was condemned almost from the beginning as the murderer and was a further victim of tunnel vision by the authorities as a pile of circumstantial evidence and witness testimony was against him.
Ms. Churchill Duke has chosen to tell the story from the perspective of Benjamin Shaw, a Halifax reporter dispatched to cover the case from the beginning. She also uses flashbacks to share the perspective of each character involved in the story, including Annie. This makes it very readable, and I had difficulties putting the book aside at times. Benjamin has the same doubts we, the reader have about the evidence as well as the blood lust the general public had for witnessing a public execution.
With Footprints in the Snow, Ms. Churchill Duke has certainly found her niche and I hope she keeps digging for more historical crimes in the Maritimes.
About the Author
Laura Churchill Duke is the author of the award-winning novel Two Crows Sorrow, and Rooted in Deception. When she is not writing books, you can find Laura teaching communication in the School of Kinesiology at Acadia University, working as a freelance journalist for newspapers in Atlantic Canada, or presenting community news on CBC Radio's Information Morning. She also co-owns the home organization business, Your Last Resort. Laura lives in Kentville, Nova Scotia with her husband and two sons. Find her at LauraChurchillDuke.ca.
About the Reviewer
James M. Fisher is the Editor-in-Chief of The Seaboard Review. He lives in Miramichi New Brunswick with his wife Diane, their Tabby cat Eddie and Buster the Border Collie. James works as an MRI Technologist at the Miramichi Hospital.
Book Details
Publisher : Moose House Publications (Sept. 27 2024)
Language : English
Paperback : 282 pages
ISBN-10 : 1998149501
ISBN-13 : 978-1998149506