M.P. Barker

M. P. BARKER is a time traveler—well, actually an author, archivist and historical consultant, which amounts to the same thing. She draws on her experience as an archivist and living-history interpreter to write historical novels about seldom-examined corners of the past. She got a firsthand taste (sometimes literally!) of 19th-century New England rural life when she was a costumed historical interpreter at Old Sturbridge Village. There she milked cows, mucked out barns, and found inspiration for her historical novels A Difficult Boy and Mending Horses. Both books are set in 19th-century New England and reflect her professional background and research work. The novels have been praised for their complex, nuanced characters, rich period details, and fluid storytelling. Numerous recommended reading lists have featured her novels, and they have received honors from literary, educational, and historical organizations, including PEN New England, the International Reading Association, and the Massachusetts Center for the Book.

About her experiences in living history, she says, “You can do all the research you want, but there’s nothing like sitting with your face against a muddy cow’s belly and getting slapped upside the head with a manure-soaked tail to give your story that ‘been-there-done-that’ feeling, and to add a new and pungent dimension to the words ‘in your face.’” She also was an archivist at the Museum of Springfield [Mass.] History, where she felt lucky to be paid to snoop through old diaries, photos, letters, and personal papers. 

Her first novel, A Difficult Boy, won awards from PEN New England and the International Reading Association and was on the 2010-2011 William Allen White Award Master List. Mending Horses was a 2015 Massachusetts Center for the Book "Must-Read" title, and a 2014 Kirkus Award nominee.

Barker is also the author of Images of America: Chicopee, and co-author with Tom Shea and Suzanne Strempek Shea of 140 Years of Providential Caring: The Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, Mass. Other writing credits include exhibits, scripts for historical dramatizations, nominations to the National Register of Historic Places, fundraising materials, and planning studies.

Barker presents illustrated talks and writing workshops to reading groups, libraries, clubs, schools, and other organizations. Speaking fees are generally $200 per one-hour session plus travel expenses. Zoom or other video-conference sessions are $150 per hour. Book group visits are free if the group purchases books (travel costs required for travel more than 50 miles from Springfield, MA). Discounts are available for multi-session days and for organizations that purchase books or allow book sales. Please contact the author for more information about pricing and discounts.