5 comments about The Diary of Jack the Ripper/the Discovery, the Investigation, the Debate.

1. I loved this book. I read if from front to back in one night. I could not put it down.



2. This is the first of three books avaiable which deal specifically with the Diary of Jack the Ripper. Although it is not the best-written book, and could have been shorter without losing impact, it presents a credible case for the diary as being that of both James Maybrcik and JTR.
   
   Although criticized by many ripperologists as a hoax, as fiction, as being "too good to be true," the most striking thing, in my opinion, is that no one has come up with any definitive proof that either the diary is fake, or that Maybrick could not have been JTR. Granted, it's not enough to be unable to prove a negative, but when you pile on all the circumstantial evidence provided by this and the two subsequent books that Maybrick and JTR are one and the same, it remains very interesting.
   
   I would have given it 5 stars for content, but style is lacking.



3. The narration is below-average, closely resembling a "what I did on my summer vacation" essay. By looking at the basic evidence in the JtR case it is obvious that this is a fake. Factor in that the guy who "discovered" it admitted it was a hoax, and hopefully no one else will waste their money on this. From the beginning of this read to the end, it smelled suspiciously of doo-doo. For a weekend armchair quarterback Jack the Ripper fan, it's a below-average read.



4. Generally there will be two extremes of ranking for this book, those who accept it as real (5 stars)and those who think it a fake (1 star). I don't accept the diary as real but Shirley Harrison does. What she puts forth in this 1998 version is her reasons and research as to why SHE thinks is authentic. Whether you 'believe' it or not is not why the book should be ranked but on the book presentation itself.
   
   The first 165 pages I enjoyed and read with interest even though I don't go for the Diary. These pages have Harrison comparing passages in the Diary to events of the times. The next section of book, roughly 170 pages is more of a biography of James & Florie Maybrick which was alright. The last section of the book is Harrison's purported findings on the Diary itself, ink & paper age being the primary focus. While the writing style is a bit dry, the 'history' of Maybrick is interesting. The biggest problem, for me, is that Harriosn goes to no other evidence other than the Diary to prove Maybrick was Jack the Ripper. Much like Cromwell's Sickert accusations, there really is no firm supporting evidence other than what they want to believe or have invested money in. It also doesn't help that the "finder" of the Diary claims they hoaxed (demented or not - and I don't think he hoaxed it either but someone did) and then some loose tangent thread that possibly the finder's wife is of an illegitimate descent of Florie, Maybrick's wife.
   
   Overall, the book presentation itself gets 3 stars and any "Ripperologist" should have it on their shelf, hoax or not. There's a very good statement in the prologue - if you go into it convinced it's fake you will never accept it; if you go into it convinced it's real you'll defend it. I recommend you read it with as open mind as you can and you'll enjoy the book much more.



5. This book will keep you reading. It is a demented tale of the perpetration of serial killings in the Whitechapel neighborhood of London, England, in 1888, supposedly confessed into a diary (kept on the pages of a photo album) by a Liverpool merchant named James Maybrick: a man whose young wife was later, in real life, tried and acquitted of charges of poisoning him to death. While it is possible Maybrick was the murderer of a number of London women in 1888, and some circumstantial evidence does link him to the cruel misdeeds, there are also hundreds of other suspects, many more likely than he. What is certain is that this "diary" is a piece of late-twentieth-century fiction composed by the person once hailed as its discoverer. (While working in the house once belonging to Maybrick, the man claimed he uncovered the volume wedged under some floorboards.) We know this because this individual has been reliably reported as admitting his hoax and even signing an affidavit to that effect. That stated, the fiction penned herein is the morbid, imaginative tale of a descent into drug addiction, madness and murder, but it is, I repeat, fiction, and deserves to be read as such, except perhaps by those who might enjoy studying a poorly-executed forgery. Might I also add I am heartily sick to death of those who glamorize whatever emotionally-retarded sexual misfit killed those women long-ago? And this book serves to do just that.

3 comments about Murder Along the Cape Fear: A North Carolina Town in the Twentieth Century.

1. I am from Nc so I thought I might enjoy this book. It is full of little known facts about the Cape Fear and Fayetteville. If you live anywhere near the Cape Fear river this is a good one.



2. Morgan's fondness of his hometown is clearly evident in this book, written by a native son who basically tells a story of Fayetteville...though "Murder Along the Cape Fear" is the title, the author doesn't really make these regional crimes the focus of the book, and they take up relatively little text space in comparison to the rest of his narrative...those local to the area, or who are native North Carolinians, will find this book a light read with interesting facts about the town, its geography, demographics, the emergence of Ft. Bragg, and finally, some of the crimes that occurred there. The author tends to stray on tangents at times, "over-explaining" events that had little to do with Fayetteville, and focusing heavily on his boyhood before returning to the topic some pages later...the goal of the book, which the author claims is establishing a common thread throughout the town's history by way of murder, isn't accomplished...overall, not crime-oriented as the title may suggest, but simply a light read written in a "living room conversation" style...



3. Though the excerpts of this book sounded really good, I just couldn't get into it because the book was too much about the author and not enough of the story line itself. Half way through the book I gave it away to someone else who might have better luck getting into it.

No comments about Killer Teens: From the Files of 'True Detective'.

5 comments about Mobfather.

1. At first sight and description, I thought this book would be great since it was about the Philly mob, but it turned out to be just average. The book wasn't one that made me not want to put it down because it seemed to focus more on the actual family (son, brother, mother, etc.) compared to the mob family in Philly. If you have alot of free time, then check this out, but if you don't, then don't waste your time.



2. "Mobfather" does a good job in describing the daily mayhem of moblife for everyone involved. The author gives rich detail in the description of Tommy Delgiorno's rise from numbers writer and bookie to mob captain overseeing loansharking, drug dealing, extortion, and gambling operations. It also gives good detail as to the horrible way he treated his family and how they finally decided to break away and have nothing to do with him. The description of Frank D'Alfonso and Broadway Eddie was an unexpected bonus in the book. I recommend this book to anybody interested in the South Philly/South Jersey mob!



3. If you've seen GOODFELLAS, you'll have a good idea of how this story will unfold. I actually loved this book because I've lived in the Philadelphia area all my life; as a matter of fact, the town in which I grew up, Sharon Hill, is directly mentioned in the book. So if you're a resident or native of Philly or its suburbs, you'll probably enjoy this.

   I appreciated the insights I received from Maryanne and Bobby. We don't often see exactly how a person's Mafia associations directly affect the members of his family. In MOBFATHER, Tommy Del's actions are unapologetically displayed for all the world to read -- made for a very interesting read!

   I deducted one star because the reasons for Nicky Scarfo wanting Tommy Del dead were rather vague. Was it merely because Tommy Del was a sloppy drunk and a braggart? To me, those seemed to be his biggest flaws. Aside from this, he seemed to follow all the instructions handed down by his superiors, including orders to kill.

   The motif of this book is that if you're involved in organized crime, you will pay for its power, riches and glamor with your life --even if you're not murdered.




4. This book takes an interesting look at the South Philadelphia crime syndicate, and the effects of its main character on his family. Tommy DelGiorno was a small time hood from South Philadelphia who rose to become a full-time mafia soldier. He was ruthless and greedy, and far from kind to his family. In time, DelGiorno's world began to unravel, and he turned government witness. This book does more than just cover the mob life from the view of the hood - we also get a look at what it was like to be the wife or sons of such figure. This book is readable and interesting, but never rises to the level of top mob books like "Wiseguy" (by Nicholas Pileggi) and other volumes.



5. I liked this book. I would rate it 4.5 to 4.75 stars. It told of how a mobster's life affected his marriage, and his relationship with this sons growing up, his downfall. I agree with the other reviewer who said that it is a Philadelphia version of Goodfellas. I would say it's a cross between Goodfellas and a Bronx Tale the movie where the boy starts running errands for the mob, and gets involved in it like the son Bobby in this story.

No comments about Please Don't Cry For Me: The Ruth Farnsworth Murder Story.

No comments about Serial Killer's Apprentice: And Other True Stories of Cleveland's Most Intriguing Unsolved Crimes.

No comments about The Soldier of Fortune Murders.

No comments about Die For Me: The Terrifying True Story of the Charles Ng & Leonard Lake Torture Muders.

4 comments about The Enforcer: Johnny "Pops" Papalia: A Life and Death in the Mafia.

1. The Enforcer is a wonderful book for anyone who has a feeling for the life of the mafia. Johnny Papalia was a one of a kind who beat all the odds in life and the mafia. This book is highly recomended. 5 Stars



2. Probably the best Canadian organized crime history yet! And I have read several.With Pops killed and the Musitanos getting 10 years (Feb 5/00),the Papalia story continues. What's next for Organized crime in Canada?



3. I read this book 3 times and every time I learned something new. I can honestly say that I already knew all this. I am Frankie's adopted son. I didn't know much about this buisness and when I asked he himself told me to read this book. After never understanding I understand. And I garentee you that this book is a real life and indepth look at life in the real Canadian Mob. It will tell you about the family's buisness and personal affairs. If you have ever wondered about the inner workings of a true Mafia family, this book will tell you. Nothing sugarcoated just the truth.



4. This is one of the best books about organized crime/mafia l have ever read; it is concise, factual and full of much detail and well reasoned explanations, it was great to read a book by a journalist who has done his research well and is also a very good writer. This book brilliantly captures the rise of Johnny Pops and the Mafia in Canada, especially Hamilton, Ontario in the 20th century.
   
   All the rackets of gambling, stand over, [...], labor and drugs are well covered and explained as the author links various criminals together and how they interacted, co-operated and fought each other. The book details the violent, and uncertain world of Johnny Pops and other criminals and Pops comes across as a man who was scared of nothing except the tax man and later in life going back to jail where he spent a quarter of his life. This book is great read for true crime buffs.

4 comments about Words for the Taking: The Hunt for a Plagiarist.

1. This is a fascinating and scary book.

   WORDS FOR THE TAKING is by the poet Neal Bowers, who stumbled on one of his poems that appeared under another writer's name. After some detective work, he found out that the plagiarist, David Sumner/David Jones, had ripped off several other of his poems, and had also stolen from poets as well known as Mark Strand and Sharon Olds. Further investigation located the man, and it turned out he was also guilty of child molestation -- a second-grade teacher who was convicted of molesting 7-year-old girls left in his care.

   I wonder if you have to be a writer yourself, to understand how violated the author felt. (And how terrifying it must have been to find out how completely bereft of morals the violator turned out to be).

   The first instance Bowers found was "Tenth -Year Elegy," a very personal remembrance of his father. Most of the other poems stolen were about family relations, which in context is sinister.

   (One must quote, for fun, the response that he got from the editor of _Poetry Forum_, with an unlikely name, Gunvor Skogsholm, the burden of which seems to have driven him to reinvent the history of poetry in his own eloquent terms: "It's my strongly felt opinion that a good poet by nature ought to possess humbleness and that he or she ought not to think to [sic] highly of him- or herself. Throughout history, those have always been the personal traits associated with a POET. If you have read any of the literary histories associated with the great names in the art of poetry, you will know this is so.")

   It's a very well written book on a fascinating subject. Bowers understands that merely ordinary people might see his concern and the steps he was driven to as being excessive, and I think in that light, both he and the publisher, W.W. Norton, are to be commended for keeping a proper perspective.




2. I think this book was good and interersting and to me It was a good book.This author is my only uncle and I think he is a great poet/author!!!!!!



3. I was fascinated by this book, especially since I worked with Bowers in his quest to catch up with his plagiarist, a quest detailed by this book. Although the editor before me published the poem, I was the editor of a small poetry magazine which had printed a plagiarized version of one of Bowers' poems. Both in our brief correspondence and in this book, Bowers' impressed me as a brave soul. Plagiarists, on the other hand, are not the pranksters they imagine themselves to be; they are the cowards of the literary world. "Words for the Taking" is a tale of courage, both in the story it tells of the tracking of a criminal, and in the example it sets of one man believing in his writing. There are many lazy, slack-off writers out there. "Words for the Taking" shows us more than any writing course could that putting effort into and believing in your writing is one of the bravest acts possible.



4. Neal Bowers made an interesting discovery one day - one of his poems was published under someone else's name.

   With this minor irritation (one never gets rich from poetry, one's own or others), Bowers began the trek down a bizarre path to try to find out who was plagiarising his work, and why. Bowers discovered a man going by the name of David Sumner, aka David Jones, who had a habit of copying the poetry from others (not only Bowers), changing the title and a first line or two, and submitting these to poetry journals, magazines and other media outlets as his own. Exactly why was unclear - any pieces of note would undoubtedly be discovered, and few publishing successes came with any kind of monetary compensation attached.

   Bowers never intended to become a detective, but the trail just kept on going. Bowers actually made contact with the person, threatened legal action, abandoned because, after all, there was no money in it beyond Sumner/Jones sent to Bowers (some $600 or so that he managed to make from the poems), copies of journals from which he'd lifted poems, a marked book that showed his submission patterns - each step of the way, Sumner/Jones claimed to be operating in good faith, but there was inevitably more to be found.

   What was going on?

   The more Bowers dug, the more surreal the situation became. Sumner/Jones had been a teacher in Illinois and Oregon, dismissed under terrible circumstances (molestation of children from his second-grade classrooms), jailed for the actions, and strangely, focussed his plagiarism on poetry that dealt with family issues and loss. Bowers was not the only poet plagiarised - as it turned out, Sumner/Jones was successful enough to have many publishing successes, and even had poetry readings arranged.

   Perhaps the most interesting part of this is near the end, the attitudes of various persons towards Bowers and his quest for some sort of justice. Journalists by and large were sympathetic, not liking the idea of someone stealing the words (the stock-in-trade of their profession) and getting away with it. But there were those in the media, including poetry journal editors, who seemed to think that Bowers was the 'bad guy' for making such a fuss. Because of the attentions of journalists, others who felt they'd been wronged (not only in plagiarism, but in other realms, too) assumed Bowers would be a kindred spirit and naturally willing to help them - Bowers' mail quadrupled, with all manner of bizarre requests.

   Bowers even discovered plagiarism from his friends - one friend, a calligrapher, set some of Bowers' poems in her art, and even produced her own hand-drawn book of his poems (offered at a very high price) without permission, and perhaps more surprisingly, without any recognition that what she was doing was in any way wrong - words were hers for the taking.

   In the end, the story ends the way it began - Jones/Sumner still sending out plagiarised work, now having 'graduated' to short stories. But one assumes that Bowers will let others continue the pursuit. Sumner/Jones, in finding Bowers to be a reasonable, even nice, person generally, may have focussed upon him more directly because of this. No good deed goes unpunished!

   A fascinating and unexpected tale.