1998: Stanley Alpert is abducted and driven blindly through the streets of new york sandwiched between 2 dangerously armed men, eventually finding himself sitting on a mattress in a dirty apartment. He describes a surreal, yet true, experience, as he, an assistant U.S. attorney, helps his kidnappers realize they’ve chosen the wrong man. Sitting blindfolded(on his birthday!) with prostitutes having sex with his kidnappers around him, Stanley slyly manipulates his kidnappers— mildly befriending them. Retardely realizing that they had stolen a man with $100K in his savings account, who is a prosecutor, the kidnappers realize they are in way over their heads.

After asking for legal advice, offering their blindfolded friend drinks, food, sex from their whores, and weed— Stanley escapes. (obviously, considering he wrote the book…)

Entertaining and interesting, considering the statistics on living through a kidnapping.

What do Chicago, serial killers, Ferris wheels, and architecture have in common? If you answered the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair you would be spot on. The author chronicles the fair and the events that surrounded it through the lives of two men. The first is the architect responsible for the fair, Daniel Burnham. The second is Dr. H Holmes America’s first serial killer. The author shows you how the magic that was the white city was perverted by the horrid acts of a man who used the draw of the amazing fair to further his murderous schemes. Not only is the book well written, but it is almost hard to believe that all of the events actually happened. Definitely worth a read to learn about the fair that cemented America’s place as a world power and showed the French that we can build it bigger.

The title of this book refers to one of a string of thirteen serial murders done by the “Boston Strangler.” Junger chooses this particular murder for the title because he is from Belmont, and the man who eventually confessed to the boston stranglings did carpentry work on his house. There are pictures of this man with Junger’s mom and himself as a baby. I find that really creepy.
The book was well-written. I just think it sucks that they never figured out who the boston strangler was.
I was unaware that this was an unsolved mystery when I started reading the book.