Lizzie Borden on Trial by Joseph Conforti

[Stefani]

I received my copy of the new LB book, Lizzie Borden on Trial, by Joe Conforti, yesterday and dove into its pages expecting some problems. The author, a Fall River native, admits in the preface that he had never read a book about the case until he began research for his book and that while "Lizzie remained very much alive in the city's collective memory and oral traditions," he "kept his distance from the blood-soaked crime."

I have heard this from other Fall Riverites as well. She was all around them, the murder house is still there, her home following the trial is still there, her grave is still there, but the daily grind of living in the city where unemployment and poverty rates are some of the highest in the Commonwealth superseded any lasting interest in a case that "stigmatized our world."

I have so far progressed but 35 pages into the book and am quite happy to report it is very well done. Perhaps not knowing too much from the bad Lizzie Borden books, and only concentrating on the primary sources and newspaper accounts, gave the author a fresh take on the case and the city. And the book is just that: a fresh take.

The author writes very well and has a somewhat poetic turn of phrase for an historian. I will report back my thoughts as I proceed in the text. There are no glaring issues or factual untruths as of yet. Hopefully, the rest of the book will be as good as the beginning. We shall see.

I would suggest you purchase this one and read for yourselves. It isn't dense or hard to read, but it isn't Spiering or Lincoln either. He doesn't make wild leaps of judgement like Brown or pretend to know everything about the case like some authors have. He is modest in his assessment of himself and his knowledge of Lizzie. It is, after all, a legal evaluation of the story, and not a sensationalized retelling for the sake of a wider audience. But I do like his examination of gender, ethnicity, and class in the study. Fascinating stuff.

[pld0128]

Just received mine too. Can't wait to start it later today!

[patsy]

I plan to get a copy. Seems from what you've said and what I've read about this book Joseph Conforti does a good job putting us into the world as is was at that place and time.