The Best American Crime Reporting

I have enjoyed this crime reporting/writing series since it began in 2002. All of the volumes of this series have excellent reporting. I was excited when this new volume came out, and it has proven to be one of the best in the series. I will give you a snyopsis of the standout tales (although all of them are good): "American Murder Mystery" Hannah Rosen writes about the decline of the ghetto, which is unfortunately correlated with a rise in crime in the suburbs, harrowing and not to be missed. "Zankou Chicken Murders" Mark Arax writes about a fast food chicken chain whose family is torn apart by the murder of two family members by another family member. Food and fast times abound. "The Day Kennedy Died" : a fascinating tale by Michael J. Mooney which is an account of a speech by an elderly Doctor to medical students on the day he was one of the attending physicians in Dallas for JFK. Ironically the same Doctor also worked on Oswald. "The Fabulous Fraudulent Life of Jocelyn and Ed," which is by Sabrina Rubin Erdeley, is the story of love, glamour lies and identity theft. "Everyone Will Remember me as Some Kind of MOnster" by Mark Boal is about the forgettable crime of a sick youngster, who thought he would be immortalized by his killing spree in a shopping mall, only to be forgotten about a week later. "True Crime" by David Grann (an excellent writer, I reviewed his "The Lost city of Z" some time ago) about a cold case in Poland that is solved with incredible detective work. Again, all of the stories are wonderful, and you will find yourself reading this book until 2 am and wanting more. Shame on the editors for not having this series come out twice a year! There could be "Best American Crime Reporting" Vol 1 in the Spring, and Vol 2 could come out in the Fall.

I love, love, LOVE the Best American true crime series. I'm a huge true crime fan, and this is the best of the best. I started reading the crime series back in 2004 and have since read every year's collection. However, even if you're not into true crime, I definitely think the writing is good enough that you would still enjoy a lot. Furthermore, if you're interested in true crime but don't know where to start, this is a good place to start. (I'd also recommend that you check out In Cold Blood, Helter Skelter, The Executioner's Song, and Fatal Vision if you want some good true crime writing). The series always includes a wide variety of crimes, and 2009's stories are true to form. From articles about death row inmates to identity thieves to corpse mutilation for profit, the book explores many different facets of crime and punishment. The Best American series always features a few stories that "humanize" a criminal and really probes deeper than sensationalistic crime reporting. Personally, that's what I enjoy. Obviously, some criminals are not as sympathetic due to their cruelty and/or callousness, but black and white thinking is usually an obstacle to interesting writing (especially about criminals). For example, one of the 2009 stories was about a teenager who takes a gun to a mall, kills several bystanders, and then himself. The story could have been superficial, but it actually is a compassionate but honest portrayal of what led this young man to such a traumatic end.