The Clutter Family Murders
My true crime "obsession" is not limited to watching documentaries on television. I read as many books as I can on the subject also. You cannot truly call yourself a true crime fanatic and not know that the book "In Cold Blood" is often considered to be the first true crime book written. In fact when Truman Capote published it (first through articles in the New Yorker magazine) he touted it as being a new genre in books. There are just several problems with this. Despite Capote using the actual names of the perpetrators and the victims, as well as places and telling some of the story, he did not stay with the facts and even invented some characters. To be fair it is labeled as a "nonfiction novel" which in my experience the word novel itself does indicate fiction. However, it is a good starting point. In the same respect I liken it to what Hollywood has done to movies over the years based on true stories and it is a huge pet peeve of mine. ...