West Author Andrew F. Popper Teaches Legal Truths with Fiction

EAGAN, Minn., July 8, 2009 – A West author's latest work provides practical and relevant insight into the law – through fiction. Rediscovering Lone Pine, written by Andrew F. Popper and published by West, tells a compelling narrative centered on two boys' daring walk into deep woods.

Popper, co-author of Popper and McKee's Administrative Law: A Contemporary Approach from West, won a 2005 Maryland Writers' Association Prize for Mainstream Fiction for his Rediscovering Lone Pine manuscript.

"I think it is the challenge of every lawyer, in fact everyone involved in the legal system, to figure out how one goes about telling an effective story," said Popper. "I set out to make Rediscovering Lone Pine relevant to law students and create an interesting story that gave me a lot of opportunities to develop themes related to the law and the legal system."

Rediscovering Lone Pine tracks childhood friends through their teenage years, law school and into their first years in practice. Among the themes Popper addresses is the issue in providing counsel to a close friend and the struggle to maintain independent, professional legal judgment; the competency of a defendant; and the impact of troubled family situations on children. A discussion guide is included in the novel to assist law professors and students in their analysis of the case theory and legal themes.

Note to editors: A Westcast podcast featuring an interview with Andrew F. Popper about Rediscovering Lone Pine is available on the Westcast Web site and iTunes (enter "Westcast" in the iTunes search box).

Headquartered in Eagan, Minn., West is the foremost provider of integrated information solutions, software and services to the U.S. legal market. West is a business within Thomson Reuters. For more information, please visit the West Web site at west.thomson.com.

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