The Killer of Little Shepherds: A True Crime Story and the Birth of Forensic Science

by Douglas Starr

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“It tells two intertwined narratives: one is this really horrific serial killing in 19th-century France; it also tells you about the origins of forensic science and policing.” Read more...

The best books on Forensic Science

Jim Fraser, Medical Scientist

The book, according to the author

The Vacher case took place from 1893 to 1898, and most of these books appeared right around that time. It’s amazing how much they reflect not only the science of the times, but also the era’s state of mind. I recently reread Dracula. (It kept me up nights, just as it did when I first read it at age 15.) What strikes me is how much that book reflected society’s nightmare of what the criminal was, and how closely it adhered to then-current theories about the criminal mind.

The best books on The Pioneers of Criminology recommended by Douglas Starr