This is much more than a "true crime" book about a murder. This book is a compelling chunk of American history.

For much of U.S. history -- and all too often, even in these more enlightened times -- justice has failed to be blind, as advertised, when it comes to the color of a person's skin. In 1963, while Boston was gripped by terror over the "Boston Strangler" murders, a killing took place in the quiet, lily-white suburban Boston town of Belmont, Massachusetts. In many ways, it fit the M.O. of the Strangler killings. It was all-too-easily blamed on an African-American workman, Roy Smith who had been hired to clean the victim's house that day.

That same day, less than two miles away, a workman was putting the finishing touches on a new addition to the home of Sebastian Junger's family. (Sebastian was just a baby at the time.) The worker's name was Albert DeSalvo.

Over the course of the next few years, Roy Smith was convicted of the Belmont killing; the Boston Strangler killings continued; and then, eventually, Albert DeSalvo was arrested and confessed to most of the Strangler killings (but not the one which had been "solved" in Belmont) and then the killings stopped.

These are the basic facts around which this story is spun. But it is a tale of complexity and depth. Smith was no angel, and DeSalvo's identity as the Strangler has been questioned many times. But the presence of DeSalvo so close to the crime scene that day obviously raises some significant questions. While ultimately forming his own opinions, Junger fairly acknowledges the ambiguities of the situation, while reminding us of basic legal principles such as "reasonable doubt."

As background, Junger takes us into the questionable history of American juris(im)prudence -- both official (2-minute jury deliberations) and unofficial (lychings) -- where alleged crimes by persons of color against whites are concerned. We're introduced to a Mississippi prison that probably killed more African American prisoners with hard labor than the death penalty ever did. We learn about the history of serial killer investigations and the origins of criminal profiling. We even re-live that pivotal event of 1963 -- the Kennedy assasination -- and see its impact on the wheels of American justice. All of this is framed against the backdrop of our changing society, as America moved into and through the tumultuous 1960's.

I found this book almost impossible to put down; it was read in one sitting with only minimal pauses. ( )

In the fall and winter of 1962-63, Sebastian Junger’s mother Ellen, who lived with her husband and one–year-old Sebastian in the Boston suburb of Belmont, employed a builder and his two assistants to add a studio to her house. The younger of the two workers was Albert DeSalvo, who eventually confessed to most of the murders the papers were calling those of the Boston Strangler. But a black man named Roy Smith had already been convicted of one of the stranglings that had occurred nearby in Belmont, while DeSalvo was working on the Junger home. This killing DeSalvo did not confess to having committed.
DeSalvo was stabbed to death in a prison hospital in November, 1973, ten years after Roy Smith’s conviction. Roy Smith died of lung cancer in another prison hospital in 1976. Junger cannot prove that Smith was innocent and DeSalvo guilty of the Belmont strangling (the way it was told to him by his parents when he was a child), and during his investigation of the crimes and the people involved he is not always convinced that is the way it happened, but he seems to end with that conviction, though he admits it cannot be proved. ( )

A well told story. Junger does a great job of laying out the facts of not only the Spring 1963 murder of Bessie Goldberg but also the Boston Strangler case. No assumptions are made and when all is said and done, we, as readers, are left with the same questions we started with - Did Roy Smith kill Bessie Goldberg? Was Albert DeSalvo the Boston Strangler? And lastly, on a more personal note for the author - What if Junger's mother hadn't left their Belmont home that Spring day in 1963?
Recommended for True Crime non-fiction fans - 3 1/2 stars ( )

I found this true life tale to be fascinating, if a bit gruesome. The story of the alleged Boston Strangler and the crossing of his path with that of the author's family. Sebastian Junger obviously did extensive research and it shows in the detail he is able to offer in descriptions of people, places, and events as well as placing them within the social context of the times. ( )

This is a very compelling book. Over the last 10-20 years most people so be aware of the 2 sides to the question of who the Boston Strangler was. This story is about the one man arrested and convicted of what is one of the real Strangler's victims, #8 Bessie Goldberg a resident of Belmont Massachusetts. It's about the investigation into her murder and the one and only suspect the police looked at: Roy Smith, a black man raised in Mississippi who had a history of run ins with the law, tho' nothing really violent. It also has a fascinating look at Albert DeSalvo who is known as the Boston Strangler from the observation and casual knowledge of the writer's mother, who for a brief time employed Albert DeSalvo on a building project to add a room to their home. The writer pulls you into the story from the first page and keeps the story flowing and your interest peaked. I picked this book up and read it straight thru. A must read. ( )