About Barbara Fradkin
Born 1947. Barbara Fradkin is a Canadian novelist, writer, psychologist and author.
Barbara Fradkin, née Currie, is a Canadian mystery writer, and a two-time winner of the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel.
Biography Fradkin was born in Montreal and obtained her B.A. at McGill University and M.A. at the University of Toronto, before moving to Ottawa to work and raise a family. A few years later she obtained her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Ottawa, and has recently scaled back her full-time practice as a child psychologist in order to devote more time to her writing.
She is an active member of Canada's writing community, she is the past president of Crime Writers of Canada as well as contributes to Sisters in Crime and Capital Crime Writers, an Ottawa mystery writers' group.
Her own experience as a graduate student as well as that of her daughter, supplied the backdrop and detail for Do or Die. Her late husband's experiences in war crimes prosecutions gave her the impetus and background for Once Upon a Time, while Mist Walker and Fifth Son draw on her own experiences as a psychologist.
Fradkin is perhaps best known for her Inspector Green series, a police procedural series set in Ottawa. The main character is "the impetuous, exasperating Ottawa Police Inspector Michael Green, whose passion for justice and love of the hunt often conflicts with family, friends and police protocol." There are currently eleven novels in the series.
Awards
Win Storyteller Magazine's Great Canadian Short Story Contest, 1998, for "Brandemoor" Storyteller Magazine's Great Canadian Short Story Contest, 2002, for "Timber Town Justice" 2005 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel for Fifth Son 2007 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel for Honour Among Men
Nominations Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2002, for "Coup de Grace" Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2002, for "Double Trouble" Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel, 2003, for Once Upon a Time Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2003, for " Timber Town Justice" Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel, 2015, for None So Blind Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novella, 2020, for Blood Ties
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Important facts
People in Barbara Fradkin's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Barbara Fradkin's
Frequently asked questions
Who is Barbara Fradkin?
writer
When was Barbara Fradkin born?
Barbara Fradkin was born in 1947 in Montreal.
What is Barbara Fradkin's occupation?
Barbara Fradkin is a novelist, writer, psychologist and author.
What nationality is Barbara Fradkin?
Barbara Fradkin is Canadian.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Barbara Fradkin. https://biography.guide/barbara-fradkin/
MLA: "Barbara Fradkin." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/barbara-fradkin/.
Chicago: "Barbara Fradkin." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/barbara-fradkin/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
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