Mindhunter

This boom was so incredibly raw. The definition of nonfiction. These crimes were horrible, gruesome, chilling and 100% real. This made them absolutely terrifying for a woman to read about. The basis of the show ‘Mindhunter', which I am obsessed with, this book was NOT for the weary-hearted. Cases and themes explored in the show are only the beginning. John Douglas is one person and the narrator of this autobiography about his career building up the crime psychology lab in Quantico for the FBI. Although the show has 2 main detectives, they actually split real John in 2 to make Ford and Tench for the show. (Great watch, highly recommend). Anyways, this book is right up there with ones I normally read from a fiction standpoint: psych thriller, murder, mystery, etc. But this book was real. This is the difference between this book and the others. It was so incredibly graphic. The graphic nature of other books is still impactful, but because it is coming from a place of fiction, minimal truth for exact nature on a particular individual, it is easier to let it go once it is done. Douglas describes real families impacted by real, brutal murders of their family members. When he tells the stories, it is because he has seen them with his own two eyes. They have a weight to them that is more impactful and really makes it hard for the reader to progress in the kind of “detachment” that typical fiction novels possess. This book took me much much longer to get through than normal. It was not for lack of completely fascinating material (what makes a criminal psychologically do the things he/she does, nature vs nurture,etc.). It was because it was so damn heavy. I needed to take breaks to let the thing sink in. I learned a lot from this book though. I come from the standpoint that people who believe in fairytales and kindness and happy endings solely are doing themselves a disservice. The world is full of good, but it is also filled with extreme evil, seen in these pages. Being a woman in the world arguably could be one of the worst things. This book gets you thinking and picking up on things that creeps would do in real life. It makes you aware (as do reading all those fiction books too). It makes you cynical, but not to a fault. Rather to a caution. I believe that these things NEED to be talked about and remembered and made aware, so that we can all be safer together. Thank you John for an amazing encounter of your career, filled with stories that you probably already put far from your mind because of the impact. Your retelling of the gruesome crimes and reopening of emotional wounds is making the world better beyond just your cop work at Quantico. It is making the general public more aware of the kind of shit that's out there. I look forward to reading more of your books on the psychology of serial killers.