I found this book so compelling that I could not put it down until I'd finished it. Well, actually, that was my experience the second time I picked it up. The first time, I believe I stood in a bookstore (Cody's in Berkeley, RIP) and read all of part one -- in which James Ellroy relates his personal history of his mother's murder when he was 10 years old, and his subsequent fascination with the darker side of the psyche and devolution into peeping and drugs. Absolutely f-in' fascinating (wish I could italicize that). The second time I picked it up, years later, I simply devoured both parts in a weekend. Part two is a matter-of-fact history of crime, particularly murders of women in the Los Angeles area in the mid-20th century. One probably needs to possess an appetite for the dark side of the psyche and true crime in order not to find this off-putting, but if you are attuned to this sort of thing, you will be fascinated. There is something about Ellroy's unembellished presentation of this sordid history that is very compelling.

I would count this as one of my all-time favorite books.

(Note: As far as what I refer to as "part one" and "part two", this is based on my personal memory from several years ago when I read the book in its entirety. There are actually four parts.)