June 21, 2005: Headlines: COS - Tonga: Murder: Crime: Safety and Security of Volunteers: Personal Web Site: Laura James says: One other book that was published in 2004 certainly should have made it onto the list of nominees for a Edgar Allan Poe Award: American Taboo
Peace Corps Online:
Directory:
Tonga:
Special Report: 'American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps':
February 9, 2005: Index: PCOL Exclusive: Murder of PCV Deborah Gardner (Tonga) :
June 21, 2005: Headlines: COS - Tonga: Murder: Crime: Safety and Security of Volunteers: Personal Web Site: Laura James says: One other book that was published in 2004 certainly should have made it onto the list of nominees for a Edgar Allan Poe Award: American Taboo
Laura James says: One other book that was published in 2004 certainly should have made it onto the list of nominees for a Edgar Allan Poe Award: American Taboo
"I was very surprised and sorry to see it excluded, as it's hands down one of the best true crime accounts I've read in many years (and I read a lot of true crime)."
Laura James says: One other book that was published in 2004 certainly should have made it onto the list of nominees for a Edgar Allan Poe Award: American Taboo
True Crime 2005 - The Best, the Ignored, and The Most Inventive
The Edgar Allan Poe Awards given out by the Mystery Writers of America (founded 1945) are to the mystery/crime genre what the Oscars are to moviemaking. They create buzz. They sell books. And they're a more or less great indicator of the best in the genre, a list to take to the library or bookstore... even if the nominations seem to reflect a strong male bias, not to mention a strong bias for books published by the "big" houses. They also seem to strongly prefer popular narratives (i.e. sans a lot of footnotes) as opposed to more historically focused accounts.
[Excerpt]
One other book that was published in 2004 certainly should have made it onto this list, and I was very surprised and sorry to see it excluded, as it's hands down one of the best true crime accounts I've read in many years (and I read a lot of true crime).
The book is American Taboo: A Murder in the Peace Corps by Philip Weiss (HarperCollins). The case itself is interesting, Mr. Weiss is an excellent writer, and the story unfolded in a fascinating way in his telling of it.
The book concerns the murder of Deborah Gardner, a Peace Corps volunteer who was killed in 1975 in the Pacific island nation of Tonga.
The breadth of his research and the extent to which he threshed the witnesses decades after the fact is a testament to Weiss's reporting skills (or susceptibility to obsession anyway). Weiss's book examines not only her death, but the reaction of the people of Tonga, the shock waves it sent through the Peace Corps, the shenanigans of the American man accused of the crime, his trial, and the shameful cover-up by the American government.
I can't recommend this book highly enough -- it's riveting all the way around and deserved a nomination at the very least.
When this story was posted in June 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:
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| American Taboo: A Peace Corps Tragedy Returned Volunteers met with author Philip Weiss in Baltimore on June 18 to discuss the murder of Peace Corps Volunteer Deborah Gardner. Weiss was a member of a panel that included three psychiatrists and a criminal attorney. Meanwhile, the Seattle U.S. Attorney's office announced that Dennis Priven cannot be retried for the murder. "We do not believe this case can be prosecuted by anyone, not only us, but in any other jurisdiction in the United States." Read background on the case here. |
| June 14: Peace Corps suspends Haiti program After Uzbekistan, the Peace Corps has announced the suspension of a second program this month - this time in Haiti. Background: The suspension comes after a US Embassy warning, a request from Tom Lantos' office, and the program suspension last year. For the record: PCOL supports Peace Corps' decision to suspend the two programs and commends the agency for the efficient way PCVs were evacuated safely. Our only concern now is with the placement of evacuated PCVs and the support they receive after interrupted service. |
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Story Source: Personal Web Site
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Tonga; Murder; Crime; Safety and Security of Volunteers
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