Great Unsolved Crimes

by Louis Solomon

If Lizzie Borden didn't kill her parents, who did? And where's the missing ax?

What happened to the $200,000 the invisible hijacker jumped out of a 727 jet with? And what happened to the hijacker?

Where would you look for the first child ever kidnapped? And why wouldn't you find him?

Plus three other stories in which someone gets away with a major crime, even murder. Six perfect crimes. The police files are still open! The cases are still unsolved! Your solution is as good as anyone else's.

Genres: True Crime, Nonfiction, History, Mystery, Crime

154 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1977

Reviews

[Shamim Ehsan · Rating 3 out of 5]

6 true unsolved crime mysteries, half of them are interesting, other half- super boring!

[Sparrow .]

A terrible cover – just the profile of an axe handle, drawn by some hack* (meant to symbolize Lizzie Borden’s crime, I assume) – but the book is precise – almost erudite – though published by Scholastic Book Services. The first chapter, “The Great Free Fall Robbery,” is probably my favorite. It begins:

“Until the solitary passenger in the rear of Northwest Airlines, flight 305, handed stewardess Florence Schaffner a note, the transcontinental journey had been entirely routine.”

What did the note say?

“It demanded 10,000 twenty-dollar bills and two sport parachutes or else flight 305’s passengers and crew would be blown up.”

The unknown man gets the money, jumps out of the plane and disappears from history.

Oh yes, I just remembered – I solved the Lizzie Borden mystery. It was a political murder! Lizzie, a social reformer, murdered her dad, a skinflint banker, as part of a wave of anarchist assassinations in the 1890s (August 4, 1892, to be exact). As for her mother – Lizzie just didn’t like her.

*No pun intended!

[Jared Guerra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book wasn't really my favorite. It felt like I was looking into a collection of news articles from the 1980s that weren’t really interesting. The stories themselves were interesting, but I was rushing to finish the book, just to get it done and over with, so that could be a reason why I didn’t like the book very much. Anyways, while this book wasn’t my favorite, I did like learning about new unsolved mysteries, and being reminded of ones I had heard of before. I liked being refreshed on Lizzie Borden and her ax story; D.B. Cooper and his death-defying jump from an airplane with $200,000, vanishing as if he never existed; and I liked learning about the first kidnapping in America that took place in 1874. I’d recommend this book to those who like some good mysteries, and those who are a little desperate for something to read.

[LobsterQuadrille · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

There are just six true crime cases covered in this book, but Louis Solomon's writing is vivid enough to get you invested in the mysteries. Some of the stories could have used more fleshing-out and seemed like they were brushed over while other stories had much more detail put into them. The best ones were:
-The Great Free Fall Robbery
-The Man with the Monkey Nose
-The Vanishing Bones
-The Ma & Pa Murders

There are probably more comprehensive and satisfying books on all of these crimes, but the overviews here are good quick reads and rekindled my interest in learning more about these cases.

[Vicki Gooding · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is a scholastic young adult, which means it is tastefully written without gore, or crude language, just the facts of the story. This is marvelous. There are six chapters with mysteries that are so baffling that the full picture is still not known. There are 3 well known cases, and three lesser known: D.B.Cooper, Peking Man, and Lizzie Borden; and then less known: Serge Rubinstein's murder, Brooklyn Museum art robbery, and the Charley Ross kidnapping. I totally would like to recommend these exciting & informative means of escape for pure enjoyment.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first two were terrific. The hijacker on Thanksgiving Eve who got away with 200000 in tens and a sport parachute, and why two? Super. The second was funny, on Sergei Rubinstein the Geo. Soros of his time -- Geo bet against the British pound, Serge the French franc. The third the Brooklyn Museum caper I had heard about, but it was interesting getting a few more details. The next two were pale in comparison but still good fun. Only Lizzie Borden was a dud. 3.5 Stars

[Mallory Reid · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am an avid true crime reader. I enjoy old and new true crime books. However, this book was so hard to read. The author goes in circles and drags on and on about the same few points in each chapter. While I did like the amount of details given, I feel that the writing itself could have been much more concise.

[Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I mean- there are little tidbits of some famous unsolved murders and crimes. It can get you a synopsis of them- but not enough to give you the full story ( that’s the point of this book ). For what it’s worth, it’s a quick read.

[Betsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an amazing book! Several fascinating stories including the very first kidnapping for ransom in the U.S. (this one was sad), the murder of Lizzie Borden's parents and the hijacking by D. B. Cooper. You won't be able to put this one down!

[E.J. Cullen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Round up of the usual stories

[Rachel 🍷✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very wordy, but a quick read

[Adrian Gazaway · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This rules as true crime pulp. Will take you about 25 minutes to get through. Also, cover is badass as you can see.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Six unsolved crimes - quick read but interesting, everything from Peking Man to D. B. Cooper

[SmarterLilac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book. Found it in elementary school and never forgot it. Terse but engaging dissection of some of the great unknowns of crime history.