Guilty? Crime, Punishment and the Changing Face of Justice -- Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“To produce a mighty book, you must choose a mighty theme.”

~Herman Melville ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Writer’s Digest is starting off the New Year with 50 Articles on Writing to Help You in 2015. Something for everyone HERE. 

Janice Hardy at Fiction University starts the New Year HERE with a great post on knowing where to start your novel.

Writers Helping Writers has a wonderful post entitled 10 Reasons Why Your Hero Needs Flaws. Click HERE to see this terrific post. 

We we were last here, I offered a copy of a very special book to start the New Year. Happy New Year, by the way. The book, An American River Almanac, is going to Elizabeth Varadan. Congratulations, Elizabeth! I will get this lovely book to you this week. If you don't know Elizabeth, she is author of The Fourth Wish, a wonderful middle grade fantasy. You can check out her two blogs, Elizabeth Varadan's Fourth Wish and Victorian Scribbles by clicking on the titles of the blogs. You will find lots of fascinating things there. If you didn't win, stay tuned for another giveaway.

I don't review a lot of non-fiction here. I really should. I always enjoy good non-fiction, but I don't read nearly as much as I do fiction. I'd like to tell you about a terrific new book by Teri Kanefield called Guilty? Crime, Punishment and the Changing Face of Justice. Here is the review I wrote for the San Francisco Book Review.

Young people have a natural interest in the criminal justice system. It seems half the shows on television in prime time have to do with crime and punishment and the law. There’s a reason for the popularity. The shows feed this interest. But what young people really want and need is real information in a form that is both understandable and interesting. This book is the perfect answer. 

 “Texas law forbids the execution of anyone whose IQ is under 70. So the question of whether Marvin’s IQ was above or below 70 was an important one—his very life depended on it.”

TeriKanefield is an attorney as well as a writer of young adult literature. She

Teri Kanefield

has clearly done all the homework necessary to write a book that gives good information supported with fascinating true cases. She delineates what the laws are and what they really mean. For instance, is it a crime if someone gives one too much change and the recipient keeps it? It can be, with jail time attached. Is killing always a crime? Surprisingly, the answer is no. But when and why might it not be? Kanefield has the answers and fascinating cases to illustrate these questions. She gives history and context in ways all can understand. This book will be a welcome addition to all middle- and high-school libraries as well as history and government classes.

I have a gently-read hardback copy of this fascinating book for one of you. To win, all you need do is have a US address, be a subscriber or follower and tell me that in a comment you leave on this post. If you are reading this in your email, click HERE to go to the blog so you can leave a comment. If you would like extra chances, please spread the word by posting the link on a Tweet, blog post, Facebook, or any other way you like. Let me know what you have done in your comment, and I will put in extra chances for you for each that you do.

Don't forget to check out Shannon Messenger's wonderful blog HERE for many more Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday reviews and giveaways.