The Trial of Lizzie Borden: A True Story by Cara Robertson

I'm always interested in reading about Lizzie Borden, her life, and of course the infamous murders of her father and stepmother in Fall River, Massachusetts on August 4, 1892. Not only was she found not guilty of their murders, but Lizzie and her sister Emma inherited their father's modest fortune, and she never left Fall River. Instead, she bought a large house, named it Maplecroft, and lived the life of a shunned citizen until her death in 1927.  

The Trial of Lizzie Borden is an examination of the murder, inquest, and trial that took place in 1892-93. What I like about Cara Robertson's approach is that she doesn't try to solve the mystery--did Lizzie do it? If not who did? Instead, she presents all the evidence, the trial transcripts, and all of the newspaper headlines and articles of the day. You decide, at the end, whether you believe she committed the murders-and if she did, if she acted alone, or was in cahoots with her sister. 

What I find fascinating about this book are the parallels to today's social media and how we treat people in the news, especially those accused of a crime. Poor Lizzie--newspaper reporters (both male and female) have no problem describing her as plain, unattractive, short, dumpy...you name it, they went out of their way to comment on her looks. The only compliment she got was for her thick hair. At times portrayed as cold and unfeeling, she was  also a delicate female who had unimaginable courage in the face of such a horrible accusation. The papers definitely had no problem deciding her fate before the jury did--the majority of people felt she was not guilty. Of course, they had no explanation for who could have killed Mr. and Mrs. Borden. The evidence shoddily gathered, and testimonies that changed resulted in just a botched mess. People couldn't remember who was where, which door, if any, was unlocked, where Lizzie was while her stepmother lay dead upstairs and her father was being killed in the sitting room. The stereotypes of women-especially educated, upper-middle class women- as creatures ruled by their menstrual cycles, delicate constitutions, and inability to kill in such a brutal fashion made me want to vomit. 

Seriously! A bucket of bloody clothes/cloths were in the cellar. When asked about them, Lizzie said she was on her cycle, and the detective and policemen quickly avoided looking in the freaking bucket. WTH! A bunch of bumbling idiots.   Lizzie was, to some, unjustly accused, and the crowds who came to watch the trial were very large-and often were made up of many women (the newspapers were quick to point out they weren't very attractive women, too). 

Yet after all was said and done, Fall River quickly disowned Lizzie, and she spent the rest of her days isolated in the town where she decided to stay. Some wonder why she stayed, but others think it was simply because she had no where else to go, or because she felt guilty that she'd gotten away with murder. 

It's all pretty fascinating, and this was my first real look at the trial and the circus it created. Photos of the main players, sketches from the actual trial, and detailed accounts of lawyers questioning witnesses on the stand make it all fascinating. And it leaves you to decide for yourself--did she do it?

I think she did. 

If you want to go a step further, watch the show Seeking Spirits on the Travel Channel. They just had a fascinating show about Maplecroft, and the current owner's desire to open it up to tours. Someone is not happy about it...could it be Lizzie? I'll say, it's a pretty fabulous and compelling hour of paranormal investigation. 

Rating:  4/6 for an in-depth look at the Borden murders, Lizzie Borden's trial, and the fascination people found in all of it. It may change your mind about Lizzie, or reinforce your belief in her guilt or innocence. True crime fans will enjoy this one!

Available in hardcover, ebook, and audio.

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The Trial of Lizzie Borden: A True Story by Cara Robertson

Summer Hours at the Robbers Library by Sue Halpern

I continue my quest to read novels set in libraries and bookstores with Summer Hours at the Robbers Library by Sue Halpern. I've worked hard this week to dive into this novel, and I'm kind of "meh" on it, which is a big surprise to me; but then again, the novel wasn't what I expected, either. This seems to be my theme this summer-reading books that surprise me. 

The novel starts off with Kit talking about how she met her husband, Cal in college. This completely threw me for a loop, and I kept putting the book down, not really very interested in her relationship with Cal. What does this have to do with a library, I wondered? But I kept going. Mostly Kit's backstory explains why she is a librarian in little Riverton, NH--a place far from where she comes from. 

Aha! The library. Set in the small dying industrial town of Riverton, NH, the Carnegie library is one of the few places left in town that is actually open. There is a core group of faithful patrons, a pitiful budget, and a need for more of everything in the library. Kit is the reference librarian, and she's very good at her job. Sunny, a 14 year old, is caught stealing a dictionary from a bookstore. She's sentenced to work 40 hours a week at the library for the summer. Probably the best thing that's happened to her. Her parents, Willow and Steve, are the type of parents who provide no structure to their child-they "no school" her (not even homeschool, just let her figure stuff out on her own), are perpetually broke, and move around a lot. They live off the grid and do a great job avoiding authority. 

Rusty, who is a minor character for part of the book, takes a bigger role about half-way through. He's an ex-Wall Street executive, broke, homeless, and using the only computer the library has for public use every day, all day. He's a mystery until Sunny and Kit get to know him. 

The library in Riverton is a refuge for all who are wounded by life, frustrated by life, or just weary. It has a gently worn feeling; comfy and cozy, but still needing a lot of attention. Kit's love of books reminded me of myself in a weird way. It took her a few library jobs in science and academic libraries before she realized it wasn't the library life that she loved, but the books that she loved--libraries were the place where she could be surrounded by what she loved. 

Back to the story! I liked the characters: Kit, Sunny, and Rusty. I was not fond of the marriage back story, which took up a large chunk of the book, and spun out too slowly. When I finally got to the point of finding out just what had happened in Kit's marriage to Cal, I thought it was kind of ridiculous and over the top. Sunny didn't have much choice in her life; but growing into her teen years she's becoming more adamant about living a normal life: going to school, staying in one place, eating candy. In their attempts to show Sunny a life of freedom, they've actually closed her off to so much of life. 

Rusty was a good shot in the arm for the novel. He was necessary; just having the unfolding friendship between Sunny and Kit would have led to nowhere. Adding Rusty into the mix--with his honesty and cheerfulness, was one of the better aspects of the novel. 

I guess I thought there would be more of a big plot point in this novel about a library in a small town. But instead it was a quiet unfolding of three lives, their growing friendship, and healing from past wounds. My feeling still stands as a "meh". 

Rating:  3/6 for a novel about people starting over, or just beginning--depends on how you look at it. I'd love to know what happens to Sunny, Kit, and Rusty after the final page. Not a bad read--character driven and not a whole lot of action. 

Available in paperback, ebook, and audio. 

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Summer Hours at the Robbers Library by Sue Halpern

News of the World by Paulette Jiles

I first read Paulette Jiles years ago, when I stumbled on Enemy Women at my bookstore.  I was gobsmacked by that novel, and it remains one of my favorite Civil War novels. 

I've had an advanced reader's copy of this book for a few years.  I was excited to read it, but somehow lost my enthusiasm about 30 pages into it, put it down, and didn't pick it up again until last week. I deliberately picked it for my book group this month so I would finally read it.  It's only a few hundred pages; easy enough, right? Read it in one sitting.  

Yet it still took me the better part of a week to read, and my only thought about that is because I liked Captain Kidd and Johanna so much I didn't want anything to happen to them on their journey.  I just couldn't bear to read a passage that would endanger, injure, or tear Johanna away from the Captain.  So that very reason kept me from reading it a few years ago, and had me taking a week to read a book I could have read in a day. 

It's a simple enough story.  Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd is a man in his early 70's who travels the West reading newspapers to audiences. It is, indeed, news of the world. His eloquent, commanding voice, and his choices of which articles to read make him a popular man in his travels.  The Civil War is over, yet fallout remains.  Texas, where this novel is set, is torn apart by political factions, hideouts from the war, and Native Americans attacking pioneers, cowboys, and pretty much everyone. Kiowa Indians are in a fight for survival that sadly they won't win. Captain is asked to deliver ten year old Johanna to her Aunt and Uncle, after being rescued from the Kiowa tribe that killed her parents and sister four years earlier.  Johanna has completely lost any identity as a white child, and is scared, angry, and speaks only Kiowa. She wants to go back to the tribe, which she considers family.  

As Captain and Johanna travel from Wichita Falls through Texas on a 400 mile journey, they slowly get to know each other. Their developing relationship is the heart of the novel, and for me that was the best part, and the most surprising part.  I kept waiting for disaster to strike, and it did, but Captain and Johanna came together and saved themselves in a pretty ingenious way.  My fears of a journey plagued by fire, floods, and attacks were unrealized, and that made me very relieved.  Instead, this novel is about a child who is suffering from PTSD, an elderly gentlemen who has been around (and also suffers from PTSD), fought wars, lived, loved, raised children, and is now continuing to spread the "news of the world" to folks who have little contact with the world outside their towns.

A bigger conversation could be had about the effects of tragedy on small children, and what family means, especially when children are forcibly returned to family that neither cares nor wants them. It's stirred my interest in historical figures Cynthia Parker and Olive Oatman, two women who were returned to white society after living with Native Americans.  Their stories are available in books and films, and are fascinating.  

Rating: 4/6. I'm glad I had the chance to go back and finish News of the World. I love Paulette Jiles' writing style; she says a lot with few words, and her characters  become quite endearing very quickly. You'll not soon forget the Captain and Johanna. 

Available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audio. A National Book Award Finalist. 

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News of the World by Paulette Jiles