Tony Hillerman Tony Hillerman ( May 27 , 1925 – October 26 , 2008 ) was an award - winning American author of detective novel s and non - fiction works best known for his Navajo Tribal Police mystery novels . Several of his works have been adapted as big - screen and television movies . Biography . Anthony Grove Hillerman was born in Sacred Heart , Oklahoma , and was a decorated combat veteran of World War II , having served as a mortarman in the 103rd Infantry Division . He earned the Silver Star , the Bronze Star , and a Purple Heart . From 1948 – 1962 , he worked as a journalist , then earned a master ' s degree . He taught journalism from 1966 to 1987 at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque , and also began writing novels . He lived there with his wife until his death in 2008 . Hillerman , a consistently bestselling author , was ranked as New Mexico ' s 22nd wealthiest man in 1996 . Hillerman wrote 18 books in his Navajo series . He wrote more than 30 books total , among them a memoir and books about the Southwest , its beauty and its history . His literary honors were awarded for his Navajo books . He was also awarded the Parris Award ( named in honor of Parris Afton Bonds ) by Southwest Writer ' s Workshop for his outstanding service to other writers . Hillerman books have been translated into eight languages , among them Danish and Japanese . Hillerman ' s writing is noted for the cultural details he provides about his subjects : Hopi , Zuni , European - American , federal agents , and especially Navajo Tribal Police . His works in nonfiction and in fiction reflect his appreciation of the natural wonders of the American Southwest and his appreciation of its people , particularly the Navajo . His mystery novels are set in the Four Corners area of New Mexico and Arizona , sometimes reaching into Colorado and Utah and beyond , sometimes to Washington , DC , Los Angeles and other areas . The protagonists are Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee of the Navajo tribal police . Lt . Leaphorn was introduced in Hillerman ' s first novel , " The Blessing Way " ( 1970 ) . The second book in the series , " Dance Hall of the Dead " ( 1973 ) , won a 1974 Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America for Best Novel . In 1991 , Hillerman received the MWA ' s Grand Master Award . Hillerman has also received the Nero Award ( for " Coyote Waits " ) and the Navajo Tribe ' s Special Friends of the Dineh Award . Hillerman repeatedly acknowledged his debt to an earlier series of mystery novels written by the British - born Australian author Arthur W . Upfield and set among tribal aborigines in remote desert regions of tropical and subtropical Australia . The Upfield novels began to be published in 1928 and featured a half - European , half - aboriginal Australian hero , Detective - inspector Napoleon ( Bony ) Bonaparte . Bony worked with deep understanding of tribal traditions . The character was based on the achievements of an aborigine known as Tracker Leon , whom Upfield had met during his years in the Australian bush . Hillerman discussed his debt to Upfield in many interviews and in his introduction to the posthumous 1984 reprint of Upfield ' s " A Royal Abduction . " In the introduction , he described the appeal of the descriptions in Upfield ' s crime novels . It was descriptions both of the harsh outback areas and of " the people who somehow survived upon them " that lured him . " When my own Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police unravels a mystery because he understands the ways of his people , when he reads the signs in the sandy bottom of a reservation arroyo , he is walking in the tracks Bony made 50 years ago . " Hillerman died on October 26 , 2008 , of pulmonary failure in Albuquerque at the age of 83 . Common themes of Leaphorn and Chee books . A number of themes and elements are common to many of Hillerman ' s Navajo mysteries . Many of them focus on the different attitudes that Leaphorn and Chee take toward Navajo . Leaphorn is somewhat skeptical of tradition , although he takes seriously reports of witchcraft . He does not believe in witches , but following a murder - suicide early in his career , in which a man killed three people whom he believed to be skinwalkers , Leaphorn realizes that belief in witches can lead to problems . Chee takes a more traditional Navajo worldview , believing in the power of traditional singers and other rituals ; however , he has come to take a more figurative or symbolic view of " chindi " , Navajo ghosts . Chee likewise studies to be a " yataalii " , roughly speaking , a shaman , whenever time allows . Leaphorn does respect tradition . " While Leaphorn was no longer truly a traditional , " said Hillerman in " Hunting Badger " ( 1999 , page 44 ) , " he still treasured the old ways of his people . " In many novels , Leaphorn and / or Chee investigate reports of witchcraft or other supernatural events , often while at the same time investigating seemingly unrelated crimes of a more ordinary sort . In many cases the two are related , the supernatural events being staged as a way to cover up the other crimes . Many novels also explore the interaction of traditional Navajo culture with the " bilagáana " , or white man ; Chee , especially , sees this assimilation as destroying Navajo culture and making it difficult for many to fit into either world . In particular , several characters are " Relocation Navajos , " raised in Los Angeles after a government program of the 1930s relocated them . The Navajo idea of " hózhǫ́ " is frequently referred to . This term refers to beauty , harmony , and the interconnectedness of the natural world . The crime in a Hillerman novel is a synecdoche for that which destroys hozho . In addition to " white " versus " Navajo " culture , with a preference for the latter , Hillerman often explores differences in social status in white society . For example , many wealthy antagonists feel that the status brought by their money allows them to do certain things that would be considered immoral . Some of the lower - class antagonists feel jealousy and a desire to be seen as equals . Sometimes Hillerman ' s liberal political attitudes become explicit , as in this emphasis on social class and his negative presentation of the FBI in many novels . Following the Navajo tradition of giving names based on personal attributes , Hillerman often refers to unnamed characters by descriptive nicknames . For example , a man wearing gold - rimmed glasses is called " Goldrims " until his name is identified later in the book ; a boy wearing a Superman sweatshirt , a boy who is the grandson of a man under investigation , is called " Supergrandson . " A murder victim is referred to as " Pointed Shoes " even after the body is identified . Awards . Hillerman has both won and been nominated for numerous awards for his work . His first nomination came in 1972 , with his novel " The Fly on the Wall " being nominated for an Edgar Award in the " Best Mystery Novel " category ; his first award win came two years later , when his novel " Dance Hall of the Dead " won this same award . He was again nominated for the " Best Mystery Novel " Edgar Award in 1979 for " Listening Woman " and lastly in 1989 for " A Thief of Time " . Hillerman ' s non - fictional work " Talking Mysteries " was nominated in 1992 for the Edgar Award in the " Best Critical or Biographical " category . Hillerman has also been successful at the annual Anthony Awards . His novel " Skinwalkers " won the 1988 Anthony Award for " Best Novel " and this was followed the following year when " A Thief of Time " was nominated for the 1989 Anthony Award in the same category . His next nomination was for his " Talking Mysteries " non - fictional work which was nominated at the 1992 Anthony Awards . His novel " Sacred Clowns " received a " Best Novel " nomination at the 1994 Anthony Awards ; and the following year his short - story collection " The Mysterious West " won the 1995 Anthony Award in the " Best Anthology / Short Story Collection " category . His last win came at the 2002 Anthony Awards at which he won the " Best Non - fiction / Critical Work " award for his memoir " Seldom Disappointed " . At the Macavity Awards Hillerman also proved somewhat successful . " A Thief of Time " won the " Best Novel " award in 1989 and " Talking Mysteries " won the " Best Critical / Biographical " award in 1992 . " Seldom Disappointed " also received a nomination in the " Best Biographical / Critical Mystery Work " category in 2002 .