Synopses & Reviews
“No writer better articulates ourinterest in the confluence of hope, eccentricity, and the timelessness of the bold and strange than Paul Collins.”—DAVE EGGERS
On Long Island, a farmer finds a duck pond turned red with blood. On the Lower East Side, two boys playing at a pier discover a floating human torso wrapped tightly in oilcloth. Blueberry pickers near Harlem stumble upon neatly severed limbs in an overgrown ditch. Clues to a horrifying crime are turning up all over New York, but the police are baffled: There are no witnesses, no motives, no suspects.
The grisly finds that began on the afternoon of June 26, 1897, plunged detectives
headlong into the era’s most baffling murder mystery. Seized upon by battling media moguls Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, the case became a publicity circus. Reenactments of the murder were staged in Times Square, armed reporters lurked in the streets of Hell’s Kitchen in pursuit of suspects, and an unlikely trio—a hard-luck cop, a cub reporter, and an eccentric professor—all raced to solve the crime.
What emerged was a sensational love triangle and an even more sensational trial: an unprecedented capital case hinging on circumstantial evidence around a victim whom the police couldn’t identify with certainty, and who the defense claimed wasn’t even dead. The Murder of the Century is a rollicking tale—a rich evocation of America during the Gilded Age and a colorful re-creation of the tabloid wars that have dominated media to this day.
Review
andldquo;(A) lively, provocative historyandhellip;.a well-written effort that makes the most of its source material on two levels, both as true crime and as social commentaryandrdquo;
andmdash;Publishers Weekly andquot;Alice and Fredaand#39;s tragic story gives a fascinating glimpse of 19th Century Americaand#39;s attempts to comprehend passion it has no language to acknowledge. Hauntingly enhanced by Sally Klannand#39;s illustrations, Alexis Coeand#39;s skillful research and documentation never distract from her heartbreaking narrative.andquot; andmdash;Elizabeth Wein, New York Times bestselling author of Code Name Verityand#160;andquot;Though the history recounted inand#160;Alexis Coeand#39;sand#160;Alice + Freda Foreverand#160;is captivating in its own right, Coe also provides a larger context for it, elevating this to the level of a societal indictment. This story of a star-crossed love with a violent ending at times reads like a microcosm of Memphis at the end of the 19th century. As Coeand#39;s narrative delves into perceptions of sexuality and the ways in which the case touched on different aspects of daily life, it never loses sight of the tragic romance at its core.andquot; andmdash;Tobias Carroll, Managing Editor, Vol.1 Brooklynand#160;andldquo;With prose that simmers with intellect and longing, conscience and sly eloquence, Alexis Coe has finally granted Alice and Freda the one thing they so desperately lacked in life: the grace of a story beautifully told.andrdquo; andmdash;Avi Steinberg, author of Running the Books and#160;andquot;Alexis Coe rescues a buried but extraordinarily telling episode from the 1890and#39;s that resonates in all sorts of ways with today. That in itself would be an accomplishment. But this is a book that is truly riveting, a narrative that gallops. Lizzy Borden eat your heart out. Hereand#39;s a real crime of passion. Or was it?and#160;andquot;And so Alice carried the razor around every day in her dress pocket, just in case Freda came to townandhellip;andquot; I dare you to pick this one up and try, just try to put it down.andquot; andmdash;Peter Orner, author of Last Car Over the Sagamore Bridge and Esther Storiesand#160;
Review
HONORS: Cybils Awards Finalist * Teen Choices Book of the Year Award nomination * Over the Rainbow Book List Nominee * Amazon Book of the Month * Oyster Book of the Week * 2014 IPPY Gold Winner
PRAISE:
*Starred Review* andquot;This is a captivating account, and readers will quickly become absorbed in the suspense surrounding Fredaandrsquo;s murder. Additionally, the book provides a foundation for discussion of sociocultural themes, such as how LGBT relationships have historically been viewed by society, gender and femininity, and even journalism.andquot; - School Library Journal
andquot;The murder was a national sensation at the time, but is little known today. ....Alexis Coe retells it here with the color and liveliness of a novel. Her account is accompanied by illustrations of the people, scenes, and artifacts that populate this story of forbidden love.andquot; - Andrea DenHoed, The New Yorker
andquot;This is an astonishing look at love as tsunami, the wild violence of passion, and a young woman undone by her own heart.andquot; - Caroline Leavitt, San Francisco Chronicle
andquot;The story of a Gilded Age-era homicide that stunned a nation with its sheer violence and tabooed origins. Haunted for years about the case, media columnist and historian Coe chronicles a 19th-century, Memphis, Tennessee-based ordeal of coldblooded murder and the jilted lesbian love that inspired it. andhellip; A historically resonant reminder of how far societal tolerance has come and that it still remains a work in progress.andquot; - Kirkus Reviews
andldquo;[A] lively, provocative historyandhellip;.a well-written effort that makes the most of its source material on two levels, both as true crime and as social commentaryandrdquo; - Publishers Weekly
andquot;This thoroughly researched exposandeacute; considers a murder that took place in Victorian-era Memphis. andhellip;This selection might attract fans of true crime, such as Erik Larsonandrsquo;s Devil in the White City (2003), although the content concentrates more on the historical setting than intrigue or suspense. This could also serve as a gritty rebuttal to idealized period romances extolling the virtues of demure and genteel femininity.andquot; - Booklist
andquot;VERDICT: Highly recommended as an insightful exploration of an important historical true crime and a solid introduction to narrative nonfiction.andquot; - Library Journal
andquot;Alice + Freda Forever is the vital combination of a sensational story and a remarkable treasure of historical research featuring lesbian lust, laudanum, and laceration....Coe has given us a bloody, interesting chapter in Americaandrsquo;s hidden history of andldquo;pathological love.andquot; - Preston Lauterbach. Oxford American
andquot;Alexis Coeandrsquo;s intricately researched, nonfiction Alice + Freda Forever depicts the destructive power of love. andhellip;Reminiscent of Peter Jacksonandrsquo;s filmand#160;Heavenly Creaturesand#160;(which in turn was based on actual events), an account of two teenagers who are compelled to murder to protect their intense, almost incestuous friendship,and#160;Alice + Freda Foreverand#160;will not only attract teens and adults alike for its gripping treatment of love gone dreadfully wrongandmdash;it will force them to think critically from both a historical and sociocultural perspective.andquot; - School Library Journal, Curriculum Connections
andquot;Coeandrsquo;s narrative covers the perceptions of sexuality, womenandrsquo;s role in society, racial hierarchy, media manipulation, and even mental health, but she never strays too far from the heart of the story: the tragic romance between two women forty years before the word lesbian would be in circulationandquot; -and#160;Justin Alvarez,and#160;The Paris Review
*A Must-Read Book for the Fall* andquot;A case of a teenage murderess and a forbidden love? This real life tale by historian and columnist for The Toast has it all. Based on rich research, including the love letters between Alice and Freda, their relationship was going to break boundaries, until it ended in tragedy. Gripping and fascinating.andquot; - Flavorwire
andquot;Alexis Coeand#39;s historical nonfiction Alice + Freda Foreverand#160;tells the real andmdash; and tragic andmdash; story of 19-year-old murderess Alice Mitchell, who in 1892 killed the young woman she was engaged to when they were forced apart after their relationship was discovered. The book includes 100 illustrated love letters, maps, artifacts, historical documents, newspaper articles, courtroom proceedings, and intimate domestic scenes.andquot; - Popsugar, Books Weand#39;re Dying to Read
andquot;Withand#160;Alice and Freda Forever, Alexis Coe takes this fascinating true tale and brings it to literary life through love letters, newspaper articles, courtroom testimonies, maps, and school catalogs andmdash; all culled into one vivid narrative. With shimmering prose, careful research, and eloquent analysis, Coe weaves an absorbing tale of crime and passion, violence and discrimination, gender and femininity, lust and the all-consuming power of love andmdash; a tale that gives these teenage lovers a voice to echo above the clamor of a scandal.andquot; - Bustle
andquot;Alice and Fredaand#39;s tragic story gives a fascinating glimpse of 19th Century Americaand#39;s attempts to comprehend passion it has no language to acknowledge. Hauntingly enhanced by Sally Klannand#39;s illustrations, Alexis Coeand#39;s skillful research and documentation never distract from her heartbreaking narrative.andquot; - Elizabeth Wein, New York Times bestselling author of Code Name Verityand#160;andldquo;With prose that simmers with intellect and longing, conscience and sly eloquence, Alexis Coe has finally granted Alice and Freda the one thing they so desperately lacked in life: the grace of a story beautifully told.andrdquo; - Avi Steinberg, author of Running the Books and#160;andquot;Alexis Coe rescues a buried but extraordinarily telling episode from the 1890and#39;s that resonates in all sorts of ways with today. That in itself would be an accomplishment. But this is a book that is truly riveting, a narrative that gallops. Lizzy Borden eat your heart out. Hereand#39;s a real crime of passion. Or was it?and#160;andquot;And so Alice carried the razor around every day in her dress pocket, just in case Freda came to townandhellip;andquot; I dare you to pick this one up and try, just try to put it down.andquot; - Peter Orner, author of Last Car Over the Sagamore Bridge and Esther Storiesand#160;
Synopsis
The "enormously entertaining" (The Wall Street Journal) account of a shocking 1897 murder mystery that "artfully re-create s] the era, the crime, and the newspaper wars it touched off" (The New York Times) AN EDGAR NOMINEE FOR BEST FACT CRIME - "Fascinating . . . won't disappoint readers in search of a book like Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City."--The Washington Post
On Long Island, a farmer finds a duck pond turned red with blood. On the Lower East Side, two boys discover a floating human torso wrapped tightly in oilcloth. Blueberry pickers near Harlem stumble upon neatly severed limbs in an overgrown ditch. The police are baffled: There are no witnesses, no motives, no suspects.
The grisly finds that began on the afternoon of June 26, 1897, plunged detectives headlong into the era's most perplexing murder mystery. Seized upon by battling media moguls Joseph Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst, the case became a publicity circus, as their rival newspapers the World and the Journal raced to solve the crime. What emerged was a sensational love triangle and an even more sensational trial. The Murder of the Century is a rollicking tale--a rich evocation of America during the Gilded Age and a colorful re-creation of the tabloid wars that forever changed newspaper journalism.
Synopsis
In 1892, America was obsessed with a teenage murderess, but it wasn't her crime that shocked the nationand#8212;it was her motivation. Nineteen-year-old Alice Mitchell had planned to pass as a man in order to marry her seventeen-year-old fiancand#233;e Freda Ward, but when their love letters were discovered, they were forbidden from ever speaking again.
Freda adjusted to this fate with an ease that stunned a heartbroken Alice. Her desperation grew with each unanswered letterand#8212;and her fatherand#8217;s razor soon went missing. On January 25, Alice publicly slashed her ex-fiancand#233;eand#8217;s throat. Her same-sex love was deemed insane by her father that very night, and medical experts agreed: This was a dangerous and incurable perversion. As the courtroom was expanded to accommodate national interest, Alice spent months in jailand#8212;including the night that three of her fellow prisoners were lynched (an event which captured the attention of journalist and civil rights activist Ida B. Wells). After a jury of "the finest men in Memphis" declared Alice insane, she was remanded to an asylum, where she died under mysterious circumstances just a few years later.
Alice + Freda Forever recounts this tragic, real-life love story with over 100 illustrated love letters, maps, artifacts, historical documents, newspaper articles, courtroom proceedings, and intimate, domestic scenesand#8212;painting a vivid picture of a sadly familiar world.
About the Author
Alexis Coe is a columnist at The Awl, SF Weekly, and The Toast. She has contributed to The Atlantic, Slate, The Millions, The Hairpin, LA Weekly, The Bay Citizen, Mission at Tenth, The Paris Review Daily, and other publications. She has participated in panels at the Commonwealth Club of California, Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, and Sarah Lawrence College. In 2012, she received a Creative Capacity Grant from the Center for Cultural Innovation. Before moving to San Francisco, she was a research curator at the New York Public Library, where she co-curated the most popular exhibition in the library's 101 years, and a project-based oral historian at the Brooklyn Historical Society. Alexis holds an MA in history from Sarah Lawrence College and graduated from the honors college at the University of California, Santa Barbara.