Obsessed with True Crime discussion
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Acquisitions ~ And WHAT ARE YOU READING? Anything goes ~ 2017
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Lady ♥ Belleza, Gif Princesa
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Jan 04, 2017 12:38PM
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I'm reading Erik Larson's, Thunderstruck. An excellent read so far.
I recently bought "True Crime: an American Anthology" edited by Harold Schechter. It's 770 pages and because it's an anthology, not meant to be read all at once.It has writings from some unlikely authors, like Zora Neale Hurston, as well as some of the usual suspects, like Dominick Dunne and Ann Rule. The oldest entry is from 1651. The introduction, by the editor, is thought-provoking.
Cruising by Gerald Walker3 stars
This slasher novel was (quite loosely) based on a real series of leather-bar murders in NYC, but the author focused entirely on the internal mental states of the fictional killer and the fictional investigators. Well-written, with a lot of densely-layered metaphors that might remind you of Jack Torrance wrestling with his demons in The Shining or the characters in Carrie. Some of the twists in this story were so clever they made me laugh out loud. Long out of print but well worth seeking out.
Just finished Hôtel Transylvania by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. A really good vampire novel set in Paris in the 1700's originally published in 1978. 4 StarsStarted Shadow of Doubt: The Trial of Dennis Oland by Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon. So far so good!
Flaubert's Parrot, by Julian Barnes4 stars
This was a remarkably exhausting read, considering it was well under 200 pages long. Dense, multilayered imagery and ideas address everything from the value of literature and the impermanence of love to the meaning of life, all folded into a story about a retired doctor who is nominally trying to determine which of two stuffed parrots is the one Gustave Flaubert used as a character in one of his short stories. Don't tackle this book if you're looking for brain candy; it's going to make you think.
Eagerly gulping down For the Defense by Ellis Rubin. It's a collection of all his zaniest, most incredible court cases.
Fishface wrote: "Eagerly gulping down For the Defense by Ellis Rubin. It's a collection of all his zaniest, most incredible court cases."I can get my hands on another one he wrote called Get Me Ellis Rubin!: The Life, Times and Cases of a Maverick Lawyer by Ellis Rubin. Sounds like it would be similar to the one you are reading. Covers some of his cases. It was written a few years before your book, I think.
In fact, "Get me Ellis Rubin!" is a quote from the book I am reading. I wonder if this is another case that belongs in the "One Book, More Than One Title" discussion???EDIT: Yes, it does. A glance at the description of Get Me Ellis Rubin!: The Life, Times and Cases of a Maverick Lawyer made clear that it covers all the same cases.
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I know a lot of you crow about getting 14 books for a dollar at the library sale, I was happy to get both books for half price. Win for me!
I've been putting this one off, but I am currently reading Bazaar of Bad Dreams by Stephen King and True Crime Stories Volume 5: 12 Shocking True Crime Murder Cases (True Crime Anthology)by Jack Rosewood. Also a YA book The Alien Club by Trel W. Sidoruk. Never happy reading just one book at a time.
A Good Month for Murder: The Inside Story of a Homicide SquadJust finished this book for my Violent Crime class. So good!
I started reading A Death In Wichita by Stephen Singular.I never realized that this abortion business was such a huge political hot-potato in the United States. It is an interesting read so far.
Rita wrote: "I started reading A Death In Wichita by Stephen Singular.I never realized that this abortion business was such a huge political hot-potato in the United States. It is an interesting read so far."
Oh, man, this issue is ALWAYS in the U.S. papers, Rita! After the November election, almost the first commentary I heard on the radio was a beleaguered feminist saying "I think we're going to lose women's right to choose in the next four years."
In my mailbox at work on Valentine's Day I found a copy of The Case of Charles Dexter Ward: A Graphic Novel in an interoffice mail envelope. Read it overnight. Nothing says Valentine's Day like plundering graves to obtain the profane secrets of the dead!
Fishface wrote: "Rita wrote: "I started reading A Death In Wichita by Stephen Singular.I never realized that this abortion business was such a huge political hot-potato in the United States. It is an interesting r..."
Fishface, you just put a bug in my ear now!!!!! We never talk about guns in Canada because they are illegal here unless you are a hunter or whatever. Furthermore, I have never heard the word abortion even mentioned for years on our news. I don't know whether it is legal here or not. One thing I do remember is that a few blocks from our house on one of our main streets here there used to be a low windowless building painted white with pink trim and I heard that it was for abortions. My hubby noticed that it is still there but does remember protesters milling around some years back. Holy cow.....right under my nose!
I'm right about dead center in Too Pretty To Live: The Catfishing Murders of East Tennessee. It's a gripping story of, not only murder, but a very unclear type and level of mental illness shared by a whole group of people.
I've begun reading "Truevine" by Beth Macy, which is about the 1899 kidnapping of two young African American albinos, George and Willie Muse, from the tobacco field where they were working (or not...). This was in the Jim Crow era, in Virginia. It tells the story a of their lives as hostages in a circus that exploited them, and of the struggles of their family, especially their mother, to find them, bring them home, and the fight, (in a largely unhelpful and hostile court system) to win back part of the money owed them. And much more.About 100 pages in. It's tightly written and stirring; anger-inducing.
Fishface wrote: "I'm right about dead center in Too Pretty To Live: The Catfishing Murders of East Tennessee. It's a gripping story of, not only murder, but a very unclear type and level of mental i..."I did not like this book for the pages and pages of illiterate emails it contained, making it too long by half. After reading my review, the author messaged me, saying he needed to include all those emails to show how deranged the people were. I disagree. Less is sometimes better.
I'm not even sure I agree that they were deranged. They were drama queens, that's for dang sure. And hey, if he's going to call these people illiterate, he should brush up his own usage and punctuation. He's miles better than his subject, but she has an IQ tested at 72 and he has a law degree. He should definitely know where to put the apostrophe in a word, especially when he's criticizing where she puts hers!
Rita, you just blew me out of the water. I thought guns were quite legal and commonly owned in Canada. Are you cereal, telling us they're not legal there!?
Fishface wrote: "Rita, you just blew me out of the water. I thought guns were quite legal and commonly owned in Canada. Are you cereal, telling us they're not legal there!?"I had to go look it up. I don't own a gun and I don't know of anyone who does other than hunting rifles. I have never even seen a hand gun.
"There is no legal right to possess arms in Canada. ... Canadian civilians aren't allowed to possess automatic weapons, handguns with a barrel shorter than 10.5 cm or any modified handgun, rifle or shotgun. Most semi-automatic assault weapons are also banned."
Fishface wrote: "Rita, you just blew me out of the water. I thought guns were quite legal and commonly owned in Canada. Are you cereal, telling us they're not legal there!?"Fishface, if you are a hunter or whatever you can register for a gun but for citizens of Canada guns are not allowed. That is not to say there are no guns around metro Vancouver but they are illegal or gang members usually have a lot of them. I guess I could double check to make sure but I am pretty sure that law has not changed. As a matter of fact, alot of Americans drive north abd stop at our Washington State and British Columbia border and bring their guns. They are turned back because of it. It just goes to show you how little Americans know about their neighbours...lol
But doesn't practically everyone in Canada hunt??? I thought it was more popular there than beer.
Fishface wrote: "But doesn't practically everyone in Canada hunt??? I thought it was more popular there than beer."LOL Nope. Beer is definitely more popular.
In my immediate circle of family and friends there is not one hunter but a lot do like a cold beer.
Finished Too Pretty To Live: The Catfishing Murders of East Tennessee and moved on to a book that really matches the February challenge: Murder in Grosse Pointe Park: Privilege, Adultery, and the Killing of Jane Bashara. Before I'd made it to page 30 the author had mentioned one of the math teachers at my high school, a guy who graduated from there 2 years ahead of me, and a place the killer used to manage that I drove past twice a day when I lived out that way. (shudder)
Fishface wrote: "But doesn't practically everyone in Canada hunt??? I thought it was more popular there than beer."Heck no Fishface! I think there might be one or two of our friends that hunt and even that is a hassle because their wives don't like it. By the way, I didn't care much for the book Too Pretty to Live for awhile but as I kept reading, it got more interesting. I can't find anything that compares with A Trail of Corn. lol
I am reading Bad Girls by M. William Phelps. So far I like it. I am done about 60% of the way.
I am greatly enjoying Murder in Grosse Pointe Park: Privilege, Adultery, and the Killing of Jane Bashara. I am starting to wonder, however, what the heck is up with Grosse Pointe Park in general and Windmill Pointe in particular. I used Google Maps to plot the route between the Bashara house, where the murder happened in this book, and the Canty house, where Alan Canty Jr. was living when he was killed. They are a 3-minute drive away from each other, both accessible by Windmill Pointe. (When Canty was killed, reporters said he lived on Windmill Pointe, an elite address even by Grosse Pointe standards, infested with plastic surgeons and cardiologists and such.) You can almost sprint from one house to the other. I mean, there are NO murders in Grosse Pointe -- there have literally been 3 since 1979, and Canty isn't one of them because he was iced in Detroit proper -- but they are pretty much neighbors.
I started re-reading From Cradle to Grave by Joyce Egginton. Right from the start it grabs your attention. I figure if it all came back to me then I would stop but so far so good.
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Times Square Torso Ripper: Richard Cottingham: Sex and Death on the Forty-Deuce
This is another misleading title.
My full review here: Link
Just got this one in the mail and it sounds soooo interesting: One Breath Away: The Hiccup Girl - From Media Darling to Convicted Killer by M. William Phelps. Its about the Hiccup Girl. Ever heard of her? Apparently this girl had a bout with hiccups that lasted for months. She was on TV and actually had her 15 minutes of fame because of it. Then when they quit and her fame was over she went off the deep end. I don't really know what she did. Will have to read the book to find out.
Koren wrote: "Just got this one in the mail and it sounds soooo interesting: One Breath Away: The Hiccup Girl - From Media Darling to Convicted Killer by M. William Phelps. Its about the Hiccup G..."Koren, I would be interested to know how you like this book by M. William Phelps. Enjoy...
I started reading Blood and Money by Thomas Thompson and so far it is riveting.
Just got my copy of The Jersey Shore Thrill Killer: Richard Biegenwald. And, even more exciting, AVALANCHE SHARKS!
Fishface wrote: "Just got my copy of The Jersey Shore Thrill Killer: Richard Biegenwald. And, even more exciting, AVALANCHE SHARKS!"Awesome Fishface! I ordered The Jersey Shore Thrill Killer: Richard Biegenwald but not AVALANCHE SHARKS! ***wink***
Lady♥Belleza★✰ wrote: "Rita wrote: "I started reading Blood and Money by Thomas Thompson and so far it is riveting.""Bella, now it is even more riveting. I can't put it down. ***winks***
I read 3 amazing true crime novels so far this year, "Without a Doubt" by Marcia Clarke, "The Night Stalker" by Philip Carlo, and "Helter Skelter" by Vincent Bugliosi. I did a full review on them here: https://youtu.be/tSsDYaqyN18
I'm about a fourth of the way into Go Down Together: The True, Untold Story of Bonnie and Clyde for the March challenge. It's excellent. That's a relief; I was afraid it would bore me to tears.Oh, and in the mail yesterday I got my long-hoped-for copy of The Manson Women A "Family" Portrait.
Got my long-awaited copy of Pee Wee Gaskins America's No. 1 Serial Killer! Meanwhile, I am just about in the middle of the brutal, grisly The Dating Game Killer: The True Story of a TV Dating Show, a Violent Sociopath, and a Series of Brutal Murders.
Fishface wrote: "Got my long-awaited copy of Pee Wee Gaskins America's No. 1 Serial Killer! "This looks interesting but couldn't find any info on the book. Can you tell me something about it? Thx.
Fishface wrote: "Got my long-awaited copy of Pee Wee Gaskins America's No. 1 Serial Killer! ..."This looks interesting but couldn't find any info on the book. Can you tell me something about it? Thx.
What info are you looking for? I was quite worried that the "Dr." in front of the author's name meant he was a psychiatrist who was just going to tell me over and over that Pee Wee was a psychopath, but the "about the author" section shows he's a professor of English who's written a lot of nonfiction, Pee Wee being his first TC subject. There's a photo section in the front that shows a lot of people I couldn't find images of on Google, including several more of his pre-prison-sentence victims and the man Pee Wee killed when (IIRC) they were both already on Death Row.
I guess I wondered if he met Pee Wee or anything else that is interesting. Just wondering why Pee Wee, I guess. Also what was it about it that interested you?
There are only 3 nonfiction books on the guy and this is the last one. The first one (Final Truth: The Autobiography of Mass Murderer/Serial Killer Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins) traumatized me; the second (Slaughter in Carolina) filled in holes from Pee Wee's autobiography; and I guess I want to know what else might be missing from my fund of Pee Wee knowledge.
Fishface wrote: "There are only 3 nonfiction books on the guy and this is the last one. The first one (Final Truth: The Autobiography of Mass Murderer/Serial Killer Donald "Pee Wee" Gaskins) traumatiz..."I will interested in hearing how you liked the book when you have read it.
I got my ILL copy of Nye's Sawney Bean. Imagine my pique when I realized it was a stage play written in 1970!
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Obsessed with True Crime
Books mentioned in this topic
Past Mortems: Life and Death Behind Mortuary Doors (other topics)The Revolution of Robert Kennedy: From Power to Protest After JFK (other topics)
Escape from Dannemora: Richard Matt, David Sweat, and the Great Adirondack Manhunt (other topics)
Dangerous Ground: My Friendship with a Serial Killer (other topics)
Blood Hits the Wall (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Brian Alan Lane (other topics)Ellis Rubin (other topics)
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (other topics)
Bobbi-Jean MacKinnon (other topics)
