Kitty Genovese
A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences
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4.3 • 6 Ratings
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- $18.99
Publisher Description
A New York Times bestseller!
Written in a flowing narrative style, Kitty Genovese: A True Account of a Public Murder and Its Private Consequences presents the story of the horrific and infamous murder of Kitty Genovese, a young woman stalked and stabbed on the street where she lived in Queens, New York, in 1964. The case sparked national outrage when the New York Times revealed that dozens of witnesses had seen or heard the attacks on Kitty Genovese and her struggle to reach safety but had failed to come to her aid—or even call police until after the killer had fled.
This book, first published in 2014 and now with a new afterword, cuts through misinformation and conjecture to present a definitive portrait of the crime, the aftermath, and the people involved. Based on six years of research, Catherine Pelonero’s book presents the facts from police reports, archival material, court documents, and firsthand interviews. Pelonero offers a personal look at Kitty Genovese, an ambitious young woman viciously struck down in the prime of her life; Winston Moseley, the killer who led a double life as a responsible family-man by day and a deadly predator by night; the consequences for a community condemned; and others touched by the tragedy.
Beyond just a true-crime story, the book embodies much larger themes: the phenomenon of bystander inaction, the evolution of a serial killer, and the fears and injustices spawned by the stark prejudices of an era, many of which linger to this day.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Pelonero's background as a playwright bleeds into her attempt at true crime account of the 1964 Genovese murder, losing credibility from the outset with scenes that have clearly been dramatized. Given that Genovese died shortly after the assault without revealing what had happened, how can Pelonero purport to represent her thoughts and feelings right before the attack, and not lose readers hoping for the "true account" the subtitle promises? This lapse is even less justifiable considering the tragedy already includes many dramatic components a quiet neighborhood becoming the unlikely locale for a savage crime and the widely held notion that the victim could have been saved with minimal effort by her neighbors. The prose is bloated with hyperbole: for example when Pelonero writes, "To call his parents' marriage stormy would be an understatement, unless said storm were a series of massive tornados touching down frequently and without warning, twisting violently along a frenzied though familiar course that uprooted all in their path, leaving a wake of bruised feelings, the occasional black eye, and old wounds so constantly reopened that they never had the opportunity to begin healing much less fade." Readers looking for a definitive account of this tragic slaughter may want to look elsewhere.
Customer Reviews
Just Call, get involved!
What a brilliantly researched book, confronting human nature!
It amazes me that people want to change the grim narrative and not just accept the moral- it’s important to help, just a call to police! Don’t think someone else has done it- it’s your responsibility, what if that was your friend!