The Best American Crime Reporting 2008

October 1, 2008
Crime novelist Kellerman, guest editor of this seventh annual collection, features 15 essays, all but two of which appeared previously in periodicals ranging from the "Atlantic" and "The New Yorker" to the "Cleveland Free Times" and "ESPN" magazine. The essays feature stories of crime and criminal investigations. For example, Jeremy Kahn writes of a small-time criminal and his problems after snitching on a neighborhood drug dealer and killer. In another story, Charles Graeber reports on a serial killer who wants to donate a kidney. The book also features some essays that discuss past events, such as D.T. Max's review of the death of author Malcolm Lowry in 1957. Each entry features a coda by the author either to bring the story up to date or give the author a chance to add some more background. As a whole, this book is engaging to read and will definitely be of interest to fans of true-crime books. Recommended for most public libraries.Joel W. Tscherne, Cleveland P.L.

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