04/15/2017
Wolfe's thoroughly researched account of the crime known as the "preppie murder" case was originally published in 1989, three years after Robert Chambers strangled Jennifer Levin in New York City's Central Park. To gather information about the notorious case, Wolfe interviewed 200 people and examined police reports, court documents, correspondence, school records, and media coverage. Part 1 provides background on Levin and Chambers, their families, their A-list friends, and their drug-fueled parties. Part 2 covers the investigation into Chamabers's claim that Levin died accidentally from rough sex, and Part 3 concentrates on the trial. The latter two-thirds will be of special interest to mystery fans as the prosecutor was Linda Fairstein, author of the "Alexandra Cooper" series. Pete Cross's measured and steady performance sometimes gets bogged down amid the many details in the book's first section, but it is an excellent counterbalance to the fast-paced narrative in the remainder of the story. VERDICT True-crime fans will appreciate Wolfe's work, but it is also a timely and important account of lives destroyed by the drug epidemic. ["Captures the drama of the trial…and perceptively sees the incident as part of the societal problem of ineffective parental supervision": LJ 8/89 review of the S. & S. hc.]—Beth Farrell, Cleveland State Univ. Law Lib.
On an August night in 1986, Jennifer Levin left a Manhattan bar with Robert Chambers. The next morning, her strangled, battered body was found in Central Park. Linda Wolfe goes beyond the headlines and media hype to re-create a story of a teenager whose immigrant mother was determined to make a better life for her son, a petty thief and drug user who'd been expelled from the best schools. It's all here, from the initial police investigation, during which Chambers claimed Levin died accidentally during rough sex, to the media frenzy of the courtroom, where Chambers took an eleventh-hour plea. Wasted powerfully depicts the freewheeling 1980's society that spawned a generation steeped in violence and the fatal impulses that drove Robert Chambers to kill.
1120059948
Wasted: Inside the Robert Chambers-Jennifer Levin Murder
On an August night in 1986, Jennifer Levin left a Manhattan bar with Robert Chambers. The next morning, her strangled, battered body was found in Central Park. Linda Wolfe goes beyond the headlines and media hype to re-create a story of a teenager whose immigrant mother was determined to make a better life for her son, a petty thief and drug user who'd been expelled from the best schools. It's all here, from the initial police investigation, during which Chambers claimed Levin died accidentally during rough sex, to the media frenzy of the courtroom, where Chambers took an eleventh-hour plea. Wasted powerfully depicts the freewheeling 1980's society that spawned a generation steeped in violence and the fatal impulses that drove Robert Chambers to kill.
17.99
In Stock
5
1
Wasted: Inside the Robert Chambers-Jennifer Levin Murder
Wasted: Inside the Robert Chambers-Jennifer Levin Murder
FREE
with a B&N Audiobooks Subscription
Or Pay
$17.99
17.99
In Stock
Editorial Reviews
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940175489331 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Dreamscape Media |
| Publication date: | 01/24/2017 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
Videos
From the B&N Reads Blog