A UM Fan's Reading List

[nohwheregirl]

So, the James Ellroy thread got me thinking the we should try to create a reading list of true crime books that we think others on the board might enjoy. Everyone can contribute, and we can even write reviews of books that we have read. They don't have to be books specifically about UM cases, but that would be a plus.

Weirdly enough, I used to read non-fiction children's books about missing persons cases when I was a kid, but I've never picked up a true crime book as an adult. I'm starting by putting a copy of Ellroy's "My Dark Places" on hold at the local library.

[PrettyinPink55]

Awsome thread idea!

[crystaldawn]

Two books about UM stories that I have read and really enjoyed are:

"The Deaths of Cindy James" by Neal Hall. Its goes into a lot of detail about all the instances of harassment reported by Cindy and also goes into detail about Cindy's ex-husband and his weird behavior. I still don't understand why UM never pursued that angle.

"A Beautiful Child" by Matt Birkbeck about Sharon Marshall and Franklin Delano Floyd. Very haunting and heartbreaking. Sharon seemed like such a bright girl with so much potential even after being raised in the environment she was. What a tragic end to a sad life.

[PrettyinPink55]

Wasn't there a story about Bobbie Parker and Randolf Dial? Also, I remember somebody mentioning an Amy Billig (sp?) story?

[MetalHybrid]

Originally Posted by crystaldawn

Two books about UM stories that I have read and really enjoyed are:

"The Deaths of Cindy James" by Neal Hall. Its goes into a lot of detail about all the instances of harassment reported by Cindy and also goes into detail about Cindy's ex-husband and his weird behavior. I still don't understand why UM never pursued that angle.

"A Beautiful Child" by Matt Birkbeck about Sharon Marshall and Franklin Delano Floyd. Very haunting and heartbreaking. Sharon seemed like such a bright girl with so much potential even after being raised in the environment she was. What a tragic end to a sad life.

What about Ian Mulgrew's "who Killed Cindy James"? That is the only book on the case that I have read. I liked at alot. It is now one of my favorite books. Did you read that one? How did you find a copy of Neal Hall's book? As I am aware, it is out of print. I got the copy of WKCJ from an interlibrary loan. What was the UM story featured in the other book you mentioned? The names don't ring a bell.

Yeah there was a book about Parker and Dial that was mentioned on AMW. In fact, as I said earlier, in Novemeber of 2001 when the author was writing the book he received a call from Dial himself. Unfortunately I don't recall the book's title. I am not sure about anything on the Amy Billig story.

In John Walsh's 2001 "Public Enemies" he mentions people like the SLA and Ira Einhorn, and also refering to another two publications about the later, William Irwin Thompsom's "At the Edge of History" and Steven Levy's "The Unicorn's Secret:Murder in the Age of Aquarius". Levy appeared on the segment about Einhorn.

If there are any other books on some good cases I'd love to know.

[nohwheregirl]

So I finally finished My Dark Places by James Ellroy. I had not realized that the book was actually written AFTER Ellroy appeared on UM; therefore, he writes about his UM experience of filming and viewing the segment, as well as the tips resulting from the segment. His account of his UM participation is actually one of the few fun, light-hearted spots in a very dark and disturbing book. I suggest you check it out, even if it's just to read the few pages about the UM experience.

Ellroy is brutally honest about his own life, his mother's life, and his feelings about his mother. Let's just say, it's more candid than I would ever be if I were writing a book about my life. I think the most compelling part of the book is what he went through as a young man after his mother's death.

Anyways, if anybody else here has read the book, I'd be really interested in hearing about what you thought.

[cuba_libre]

I am a huge fan of true crime books. This was a fabulous thread! Now there are some more novels to add to my collection....

[crystaldawn]

Sorry Metal Hybrid, I didn't notice your questions to me until this thread was bumped back up. To answer your questions, I got the Neal Hall book somewhere on the net (its been a few years so I don't remember exactly where). You can actually find it several places on the net but here is one I found:
http://timsbookexchange.com/catalogue.phtml

Secondly, "A Beautiful Child" book concerns the UM segment about Franklin Delano Floyd and was interviewed from prison in the segment. He abducted a little boy (Michael Hughes) from his classroom and also the principal whom he tied to a tree before taking off with Michael. Michael was never seen again. He claimed he was Michael's father but dna tests proved otherwise. Michael's mother was "Sharon Hughes" (she went by a lot of aliases-no one's sure of her true name). She was killed earlier in a suspicious hit and run with Floyd as the prime suspect. She had been with Floyd since she was little and initially he claimed she was his daughter but when she was a teenager he turned around and married her! Anyway a very interesting book.

[Kane]

Originally Posted by crystaldawn

"The Deaths of Cindy James" by Neal Hall. Its goes into a lot of detail about all the instances of harassment reported by Cindy and also goes into detail about Cindy's ex-husband and his weird behavior. I still don't understand why UM never pursued that angle.

Well, one has to wonder whether the situation involving Cindy's ex-husband was publicly known before UM aired the segment. That's a common factor in what the media tells or doesn't tell you. Maybe I'm missing something, but could it be that the cops suspected the ex-husband, but kept their suspicions to themselves (even from UM) due to a lack of evidence? This is just a thought.

I've expressed this type of idea on other cases. You see, I have learned that there are cases in which cops are quiet about their suspicions of someone, and there are two good reasons for that situation:

1) If you have the right guy, you want to keep the media away from him. That way, the suspect is less likely to be cautious, and more likely to make a mistake that will give him away.

2) If you have the wrong guy, then you haven't vilified an innocent person.

[dynoguy88]

As someone who read both books about the Cindy James case, I think Neal Hall's is the better version. He goes more in order from start to beginning and looks at the harrasment from both angles; suicide AND murder. Ian Mulgrew's book hints more towards suicide and goes into too much detail about Cindy's family history. I got the Neal Hall book online a couple years ago for just $2.00. I went to some true crime book web site, can't remember what it was called exactly.

Has anyone read the book about Anita Green's murder? It was written by Michelle Sammit who was interviewed in the UM segment. I think it was called "No Santuary," or something. I'd like to get a copy of that.

[Kane]

Originally Posted by dynoguy88

Has anyone read the book about Anita Green's murder? It was written by Michelle Sammit who was interviewed in the UM segment. I think it was called "No Santuary," or something. I'd like to get a copy of that.

No, I haven't read it. By the way, the full title of the book is No Sanctuary: The True Story of a Rabbi's Deadly Affair. If you should search the author's name through any search engine (such as Google), you should type in "Michele Samit". That's the actual spelling of her name (both first name and last name).

[justins5256]

For the UM reading list:

Check out "Murderers Among Us" by Stephen G. Michaud, and Hugh Aynesworth.

It covers a lot of cases that have been on UM including Jeeves/Korper, Oberholzter/Schnee "orange socks" murders, Tanya Van Culenbord/Jay Cook double homicide, Ed Baker, Ralph Probst, McCorkendale, Richard Bocklage, Larry George, and William Jordan/Ted Anthony Prevatte.

[Kane]

Originally Posted by justins5256

For the UM reading list:

Check out "Murderers Among Us" by Stephen G. Michaud, and Hugh Aynesworth.

It covers a lot of cases that have been on UM including Jeeves/Korper, Oberholzter/Schnee "orange socks" murders, Tanya Van Culenbord/Jay Cook double homicide, Ed Baker, Ralph Probst, McCorkendale, Richard Bocklage, Larry George, and William Jordan/Ted Anthony Prevatte.

Justin5256, when you mentioned the last name of McCorkendale, were you referring to Dwayne McCorkendale, who was shot to death at an Oklahoma truck stop in 1988?

By the way the book you mentioned, Murderers Among Us, seems familiar. In fact, my local library had that book. When I worked there in the early 1990s, I happened to notice it. I remembered that it listed numerous cases that had been featured on UM, including the murders, including the murders of Jay Cook and Tanya Van Cuylenborg (the actual spelling of her last name). I don't know if the library still has that book, but I'll be sure to check the next time I happen to be there.

I actually mentioned that book at this message board, a few months ago. That was when I learned that it discussed the 1981 murders of Roxann Jo Jeeves and her son five-year-old son Kristopher Korper. Even though I saw that UM segment only once (and, to my knowledge, was never rerun on Lifetime), it was an eerie case, in part because the day of the murders, December 23, 1981, just happened to be Kristopher Korper's fifth birthday! It was also just two days before Christmas.

I have to tell you the truth, for years, I have been hoping that someone who worked on UM would produce a book, recalling some of the significant cases UM profiled (just like how John Walsh highlighted the America's Most Wanted cases that mattered to him in his 1998 book, No Mercy). I don't know if it will ever happen, but one thing is for sure: it wouldn't hurt to give it a chance.

[ouphe]

I'm not sure if the following books specifically qualify as "true crime," but I thought I'd throw them in. These are the best books I have ever read regarding the CIA and how it operates. They have all been heavily suppressed, are hard to find, and when they are found may be expensive to purchase. None of them are difficult reads and they are all very, very fascinating.

• CIA Diary - Inside the Company, by Philip Agee - easiest to find of the three, first printings are the best
• The Third Option, by Ted Shackley - a true treasure-trove of CIA information, expensive.
• The Secret Team, Third Edition by L. Fletcher Prouty - probably best of the bunch, deeply suppressed, expensive.

[shek]

I have mentioned this before on other threads, so forgive me for repeating but the book title 'The Murder of Lil Miss' (Lisa Marie Kimmell) is also now available. Many UM fans having been following her case for years. I wrote the book to hopefully answer the many questions we have been asked over the years. This book is somewhat different than most true crime books because it is told in first person, from my experiences not an out side, thrid persons point of view. And for that reason it makes it a little more difficult to read from an emotional point of view. I did hire an author to help me write the book because I was too emotionally connected and she was able to offer some "out side" objectivity from a readers point of view. For example, when she thought it was important to include the back ground and profile of Lisa's murderer, I told her I didn't give a damn about him nor did I want to devote any part of my book to him. So, I assigned that portion of the book to her. But anyway, if you have questions about the book, please let me know.

Sheila Kimmell