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The Lindbergh Child (2008)

by Rick Geary(Favorite Author)

3.85 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

1561635294 (ISBN13: 9781561635290)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

NBM Publishing

review 1: Why I picked it up: I needed a true crime book for my reading challenge and my friend Snow recommended a series of graphic novels depicting crimes in the 20th century. I had heard of the Lindbergh baby but knew very little of the case, so I picked this one so I could learn something.This is the story of the kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh, Jr, in graphic novel format. There is a very short introduction of Charles Lindbergh and how he meets his wife Anne before moving on to the events of March 1, 1932.It was a pretty quick read and I learned something. I knew of the kidnapping, of course, but didn’t really know how bizarre some of the events became. The stark black and white drawings make everything feel sinister, but many of the faces were too alike for my untrained ... moreeye. I relied on the text to know who I was looking at. A bibliography was in the front of the book and I liked that it was actually first and not stuck at the end. The map of the area around the Lindbergh house was also helpful.Genre Bingo: True Crime
review 2: Charles Lindbergh Jnr, aged 20 months, was taken from his room during the night of March 1 1932, while his parents Charles Lindbergh - the celebrated aviator who made the first transatlantic crossing in 33 and a half hours - and Anne Morrow Lindbergh were downstairs. Also in the house were two servants and the baby's nurse, Betty Gow, who would be the first to discover the baby was missing. A ransom note was left on the windowsill where the abductor had supposedly entered asking for $50,000 for the baby's safe return. What followed was a feverish search for the baby, the hunt for the abductor, and, following the capture of the abductor, be called the "crime of the century". The details of the case are fascinating. How no fingerprints except the baby's were found in the nursery for example, or the fact that in a full house how nobody saw or heard anything like a home made ladder being set up outside and the abductor entering and taking the baby without a noise being uttered by the infant. The baby's remains were later found a short distance from the house, after the ransom had been paid. An unemployed German immigrant called Bruno Hauptmann would later be charged with the murder and abduction after it was found that he had in his possession over $14,000 of the ransom money, the serial numbers having been recorded before being handed out. Also a plank of wood from his attic was missing which matched a part of the home made ladder found at the scene of the abduction. Though there was a lot of circumstantial evidence and dody witnesses, all recounted here by Geary, Hauptmann was convicted and executed in 1936. Though it seemed likely Hauptmann was the perpetrator, it has never been conclusive and the various theories and inconsistencies are fascinating to read about. Though it was famous at the time and for many years afterward, now in the 21st century the case remains all but forgotten to the mass of people and to myself. It was a thorough and interesting account of this case and was great to read. As always, Geary brings to light forgotten cases and reveals them in detail, keeping the reader in suspense despite these cases being resolved decades ago. Another great book by Geary, highly recommended. less

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