Take a photo of a barcode or cover
# 1 - Read a YA nonfiction book
The second book of my reading challenge was found on the ReadHarder website, since I had no idea where to start for this prompt. I found the blurb "YA true crime needs to happen so much more and this book is a great one" to be all that was needed to convince me that this book was going to be my next one. So, off I went to the library!
To start things off, I realized I didn't know the slightest thing about Lizzie Borden - not even much of the popular claims that she was a kleptomaniac, had a seething hatred for her stepmother, that she decapitated cats, etc. Even so, what I did know was that she had been accused of killing her parents. That being said, all of the myriad details laid out carefully by the author really helped me to get a better context and understanding of what might have gone on during the trial, from the time of the murder until the electrifying verdict of the trial. The many photographs included in the book were also quite helpful as visual aids to the overall story of this "true crime."
How I wished that there had been some sort of final word from the author about what had truly happened! But unfortunately, we do not, and may never, know. If only CSI could time-travel and enhance, enhance, enhance...
Some nonfiction historical accounts can be quite dry to get through, and I will admit that I suffer from shorter stamina than many, especially because I read nonfiction essentially all day for my job (with school, now, adding more non-fic on top!). There were times where I left this book sitting around, and I'm not sure if it's because I was just overwhelmed with the business of everything else, or if I had reached my nonfiction limit. Even so, I found the writing to be engaging and suspenseful.
I'm not sure what made this book "YA" and not just a regular old non-fiction book, but I would recommend this to people of all ages who would like to know a bit more about the whole Borden affair.
The second book of my reading challenge was found on the ReadHarder website, since I had no idea where to start for this prompt. I found the blurb "YA true crime needs to happen so much more and this book is a great one" to be all that was needed to convince me that this book was going to be my next one. So, off I went to the library!
To start things off, I realized I didn't know the slightest thing about Lizzie Borden - not even much of the popular claims that she was a kleptomaniac, had a seething hatred for her stepmother, that she decapitated cats, etc. Even so, what I did know was that she had been accused of killing her parents. That being said, all of the myriad details laid out carefully by the author really helped me to get a better context and understanding of what might have gone on during the trial, from the time of the murder until the electrifying verdict of the trial. The many photographs included in the book were also quite helpful as visual aids to the overall story of this "true crime."
How I wished that there had been some sort of final word from the author about what had truly happened! But unfortunately, we do not, and may never, know. If only CSI could time-travel and enhance, enhance, enhance...
Some nonfiction historical accounts can be quite dry to get through, and I will admit that I suffer from shorter stamina than many, especially because I read nonfiction essentially all day for my job (with school, now, adding more non-fic on top!). There were times where I left this book sitting around, and I'm not sure if it's because I was just overwhelmed with the business of everything else, or if I had reached my nonfiction limit. Even so, I found the writing to be engaging and suspenseful.
I'm not sure what made this book "YA" and not just a regular old non-fiction book, but I would recommend this to people of all ages who would like to know a bit more about the whole Borden affair.
dark
informative
sad
fast-paced
informative
fast-paced
Growing up I knew about the story of Lizzie Borden but I only knew a little about her and the trial. I found this book very informative and interesting. I'm glad the author left it our own interpretation of what might have happened that day since it seems the information given that day was all over the place.
I still can't help but wonder if she actually did it. Did she have a disagreement with her parents that upset her? Did she hope Bridget would find the bodies? Is it possible an intruder did this?
It would be neat if evidence was tampered with we could test it today.
I still can't help but wonder if she actually did it. Did she have a disagreement with her parents that upset her? Did she hope Bridget would find the bodies? Is it possible an intruder did this?
It would be neat if evidence was tampered with we could test it today.
This isn't the first exploration of the Borden story I've read (the most interesting was by an FBI profiler, The Cases That Haunt Us) but it is the best YA version... thus far. My quibbles come when I put on my ENFYA hat, and even then I have to wonder if they'll be corrected when the final version is published. Quibbles like: the odd placement of the pullout information; the photos being clumped into two sections, rather than spread throughout; the resolution on the blueprints for the house is poor and a better drawing would have been very helpful; and did the author actually get to see the house as it is now? And then there was the weird phrasing about how the myth or question has spanned three centuries. Technically, yes - this all happened in the late 1800s and we're now in the 2000s. But, well, it's been slightly over a century since the murders and that phrase implies it happened nearly 300 years ago.
ARC provided by publisher.
ARC provided by publisher.
I remember reading [b:The Lizzie Borden Trial|416443|The Lizzie Borden Trial (Be the Judge, Be the Jury)|Doreen Rappaport|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1174550010s/416443.jpg|2036351] in school when I was eleven and being thoroughly convinced (though neither that book nor The Borden Murders tries to solve the case definitively) that Lizzie Borden was guilty. Reading The Borden Murders makes me think differently: not necessarily that she was definitely not guilty, but that the investigation was so much of a shitshow that, barring the unlikeliest of new evidence, there's just no way to know for sure.
Some minimal background, if you don't know the case: in 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were found violently murdered in their home. Suspicion fell almost immediately on Andrew Borden's younger daughter, Lizzie (who, along with her older sister, lived with their parents), and she was arrested and eventually put to trial. She was acquitted by the jury but not by the public, and well over a hundred years later, it's still her name that's attached to the case.
The Border Murders doesn't take the focus off Lizzie, but it attempts neither to prove nor to disprove her involvement. Rather, it focuses on how much was not known and how poorly the case was handled by the police and the media. It's still not entirely clear to me how much of what went on was standard police procedure at the time and how much was bungled. For example, fingerprinting technology wasn't readily available, but was it normal that the police would wrap up a possible murder weapon (the head of an axe) and tuck it in a pocket? I also would have loved to see some contemporary psychology applied. At the time, Lizzie Borden received intense media criticism for not behaving as the public thought she should—for not collapsing in hysterics when she found her father's body, basically. Miller does not that there were discrepancies even in terms of what the papers thought was appropriate: some thought she should have run straight to her father's body like a dutiful daughter, or something like that; others thought she should have run screaming out of the house to get as far away from the body as she could. A contemporary psychologist wouldn't be able to offer any solid answers (certainly not if they were working solely with the contradictory and biased information available!), but I'd be interested to know what one, or a contemporary detective, might say about what they'd make of Lizzie Borden's affect now.
So...who knows? Not me. I understand that other books have tried to make cases for either 1) Lizzie Borden's guilt or 2) somebody else's guilt (e.g., Lizzie's uncle, who might have had a financial incentive), but it doesn't seem likely that anyone will ever know for sure.
An aside: the book is labelled as appropriate for ages 10 and up, which may be true, but it's also perfectly appropriate for an adult audience. I find it quite surprising that the library shelved it in children's nonfiction, actually.
Some minimal background, if you don't know the case: in 1892, Andrew and Abby Borden were found violently murdered in their home. Suspicion fell almost immediately on Andrew Borden's younger daughter, Lizzie (who, along with her older sister, lived with their parents), and she was arrested and eventually put to trial. She was acquitted by the jury but not by the public, and well over a hundred years later, it's still her name that's attached to the case.
The Border Murders doesn't take the focus off Lizzie, but it attempts neither to prove nor to disprove her involvement. Rather, it focuses on how much was not known and how poorly the case was handled by the police and the media. It's still not entirely clear to me how much of what went on was standard police procedure at the time and how much was bungled. For example, fingerprinting technology wasn't readily available, but was it normal that the police would wrap up a possible murder weapon (the head of an axe) and tuck it in a pocket? I also would have loved to see some contemporary psychology applied. At the time, Lizzie Borden received intense media criticism for not behaving as the public thought she should—for not collapsing in hysterics when she found her father's body, basically. Miller does not that there were discrepancies even in terms of what the papers thought was appropriate: some thought she should have run straight to her father's body like a dutiful daughter, or something like that; others thought she should have run screaming out of the house to get as far away from the body as she could. A contemporary psychologist wouldn't be able to offer any solid answers (certainly not if they were working solely with the contradictory and biased information available!), but I'd be interested to know what one, or a contemporary detective, might say about what they'd make of Lizzie Borden's affect now.
So...who knows? Not me. I understand that other books have tried to make cases for either 1) Lizzie Borden's guilt or 2) somebody else's guilt (e.g., Lizzie's uncle, who might have had a financial incentive), but it doesn't seem likely that anyone will ever know for sure.
An aside: the book is labelled as appropriate for ages 10 and up, which may be true, but it's also perfectly appropriate for an adult audience. I find it quite surprising that the library shelved it in children's nonfiction, actually.
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
I didn't know much about this story before I read this book. It is nonfiction that reads more like a novel. I would recommend it for anyone who likes a good murder trial story even if they are not usually a fan of nonfiction.
This book is an excellent start for those looking into the Borden killings. It doesn't get overburdened in heavy language and instead gives you a fair retelling of the events. Even in situations where the truth gets blurred (of which there are many) the author does well explaining why (ideals of the time, lost evidence, etc). Knowing a fair amount already, I'm happy to share that the book actually taught me a few things. Overall, the book is a nice door into one of the biggest trials the United States has seen and definitely leaves the reader intrigued for more.