The Summer of Helter Skelter

David Kennedy

Summary

The most authoritative account ever written of how an ordinary juvenile delinquent named Charles Manson became the notorious murderer whose crimes still shock and horrify us today. 
More than forty years ago Charles Manson and his mostly female commune killed nine people. It was the culmination of a criminal career that traces back to Manson's childhood. 
Manson puts the killer in the context of his times, the turbulent late sixties, an era of race riots and street protests when authority in all its forms was under siege. 
Manson created and refined his message to fit the times, persuading confused young women (and a few men) that he had the solutions to their problems. At the same time he used them to pursue his long-standing musical ambitions, relocating to Los Angeles in search of a recording contract. 
His frustrated ambitions, combined with his bizarre race-war obsession, would have lethal consequences as he convinced his followers to commit heinous murders on successive nights. 
We will look at the life and crime of America's most horrific cult leader. 
And explore where "The Manson Family" is today.

Available since: 09/12/2018.

Other books that might interest you

Brutus - Caesar's Assassin

Kirsty Corrigan

The extraordinary life of the “noblest Roman of them all.”   Although Marcus Junius Brutus is one of the most famous, or infamous, conspirators of Rome and the ancient world, if not of all time, knowledge of this historical figure has principally been passed to the modern world through the literary medium of Shakespeare’s tragedy, Julius Caesar. Furthermore, any interest in Brutus has tended to focus only on events surrounding his most legendary act: Caesar’s murder. This biography instead considers Brutus in his historical context, gathering details from ancient evidence and piecing together, as much as possible, his whole life.   While his actions played a pivotal role in Roman history, ultimately, although completely unintentionally, bringing about the downfall of the Roman republic, Brutus has often been neglected. Indeed, he has rarely been considered on his own merits, instead featuring as part of the biographies and studies of other leading political figures of the time, especially those of Julius Caesar, Cicero, and Octavian. As the first dedicated biography in over thirty years, this full and balanced reconsideration of this significant Roman republican is long overdue.

Show book

Edgar Allan Poe - The...

Albert Jack

Edgar Allan Poe was a master of the macabre. He wrote horror stories, mysteries, poems, fiction and non-fiction. He was a master of suspense and the father of the modern detective stories. 
He had the likes of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie copying his format to create their own stories and is considered one of the most influential writers in history. 
However, his own untimely demise would prove to be the biggest mystery of all with detectives and fans from around the globe trying to discover what really happened to the master of mystery. 
And now his legion of fans can find out. 
Part of Albert Jack's Mysterious World Series

Show book

A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home...

Sue Halpern

At loose ends with her daughter leaving home and her husband on the road, Sue Halpern decided to give herself and Pransky, her under-occupied Labradoodle, a new leash-er, lease-on life by getting the two of them certified as a therapy dog team. Smart, spirited, and instinctively compassionate, Pransky turned out to be not only a terrific therapist but an unerring moral compass. In the unlikely sounding arena of a public nursing home, she led her teammate into a series of encounters with the residents that revealed depths of warmth, humor, and insight Halpern hadn't expected. And little by little, their adventures expanded and illuminated Halpern's sense of what virtue is and does-how acts of kindness transform the giver as well as the given-to.Funny, moving, and profound, A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home is the story of how one faithful, charitable, loving, and sometimes prudent mutt-showing great hope, fortitude, and restraint along the way (the occasional begged or stolen treat notwithstanding)-taught a well-meaning woman the true nature and pleasures of the good life.

Show book

Death in a Cold Town - The...

Steven McGregor

There is a common misconception that if a body can’t be found, then no one can be brought to trial for murder. That isn’t true, as one Scottish man discovered. Twice!Arlene Fraser was an attractive, vivacious mother of two young children who lived in the peaceful town of Elgin in the Northeast of Scotland. On the morning of April 28, 1998, she was seen waving to her children as they left for school. One hour later, she called the school to check about a trip. It was a very ordinary day in an ordinary Scottish town. Yet that was the last time anyone saw or heard from Arlene Fraser.Police found no signs of a struggle or foul play in the house, and Arlene’s spectacles, contact lenses, medication, keys, and passport were all still where she had left them. A vacuum cleaner was found in her daughter’s bedroom, plugged in but switched off, as if Arlene had been interrupted during housework and had stepped outside for a moment. However, despite one of the biggest police operations ever mounted in Scotland and a massive search involving the RAF, police dogs, and members of the public, no trace of Arlene or her body were ever found.Despite having a cast-iron alibi for the relevant time, Nat Fraser, Arlene’s husband, was eventually charged with her murder. However, many people felt his trial was unfair, with the police accused of withholding vital evidence and questions being raised about the motivations and honesty of one of the main witnesses for the prosecution. Nat Fraser appealed, his sentence was eventually quashed, and he was freed. Then, he was tried again using essentially the same evidence and the same witnesses. The original verdict was repeated. He appealed, again....This case raises a number of questions that still remain the subject of heated debate in Scotland. What happened to Arlene Fraser in April 1998? Did her husband really arrange for her abduction and murder? Were any of the trials and appeals fair? Were the verdicts correct? Who was the murderer?Find out the answers to all these questions in this detailed and unbiased look at this extraordinary case.Murder World: real crimes, real killers.

Show book

Strange Little Girl

Jessica Knight

Maybe you don't need heaven, maybe you just need to find yourself.My father tells it because he made it up. A little bedtime story of my origin. They are not really my parents, the people who I call Mum and Dad. Those are not my siblings, the kids who I know as my brother and sisters.I am not really human.I am an alien from another planet in a far distant constellation.Jessica Knight grew up on a dairy farm in rural Victoria, her crib next door to where all the cows were milked. It's a loving Mormon household, a god-fearing home. While they don't have very much, it's their values and good humour that allows them to laugh at what scares them.All young Jessica wants is to be good and make her parents and her Heavenly Father happy. She cleans the house and helps out with her siblings; all the while being subjected to intensive medical tests and major surgeries. Doctors consider her a puzzle and a medical mystery.But what if you decide you want to be open about your fears?This is the story of how one young woman learned to move on from the life she was expected to have, embraced what she was scared of, and looked to her future with an open heart and mind.

Show book

Expressions - A Poetry Book

Tameika Rahming

She got a second chance and she wasn’t about to lose it... 
A first time author, Tameika Rahming found the courage to share her battles with love, self-image, and acceptance throughout her cancer journey. Laid out in raw poems, she digs deeper into her life to question not only her purpose, but the people who have shaped her life the most. Take a leap of faith into her mind, body, and soul as she explores the possibilities and the what ifs.

Show book