Brendan’s Alternate Tagline for Raised by a Serial Killer:
Father does NOT know best.
Quick synopsis:
The story of April Balascio being raised by her father and serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards.
Fact for Non-History People:
The U.S. leads the world in the number of documented serial killers and have more than the next ten countries combined.
Fact for History Nerds:
Serial murder is a rare event and makes up less than 1% of all murders in a given year.
My Take on Raised by a Serial Killer:
I need a hug. I think April Balascio needs a hug, too. She is the author of Raised by a Serial Killer. I don’t think I need to explain the plot at all because the title pretty much tells you what you need to know. Her father was Edward Wayne Edwards. He was not a good man. He was also April’s father and this is where things get brutal.
The first thing I should mention is that Balascio’s prose is simple. There isn’t a bunch of complex sentences or tortured metaphors. To say the simplicity makes the book that much more effective would be the understatement of the year. Balascio just tells her story. It frequently involves beatings, emotional manipulation, and terrorism thinly disguised as “pranks.” It also, somehow, contains a loving father. Sometimes. A psychopath and killer, but also a father who changes her bandages after a childhood accident. A father who calmly drives the car next to her when she tries to “run away” as a kid.
The juxtaposition of Edwards the father and Edwards the torturer makes this so different from most true crime. Balascio is not showing off. She is sticking to the facts whether they make sense to the reader or not. Like any great book, it got me thinking about way more than what was on the page. I thought of my own performance as a father. (Great news: I’m father of the century next to Edwards!) I try to imagine if I would be fooled like so many other people if I met him in real life and didn’t know. However, most powerfully is the pain you feel for the children of Edward Wayne Edwards. Balascio makes it quite clear she doesn’t tolerate pity. You’d need to be made of stone not to feel for anyone caught in Edwards’ wake, though.
In summary, it is a must read, though you may have trouble shaking it off.
(This book was provided as an advance copy by the publisher.)
Verdict:
Riveting and a must read. Buy it here!
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