A true encyclopedia of kidnapping and crime in the 1930s! This book takes a while to get through - there are just SO many stories - but it's a fascinating look at life in a long-ago era.

This book just wasn’t for me. DNF about 30% through. I wanted more of the why behind the crime and this felt more like a compilation of various anecdotes.

I wanted to love this collection of kidnapping stories from the Great Depression, however the passive tone of the book left me just wanting to set the book down.

I had to wait to get the audio so that I could even finish it and even then, I had to put it on 2x to get through it. I probably should've just DNF'd, but I was intrigued by the cases. Even though the cases seemed to be revertive in a sense because honestly how different can kidnappings be from the Great Depression era? I commend the author on his hard work and I can tell that he spent a lot of time researching and writing this book. However, in a time when so many true crime books are being released with interesting cases and a easily readable tone, I'm afraid this one may get lost in the fray.

If you're looking to learn about some kidnappings from the Great Depression era that are the not the Lindenbergh kidnapping, I suggest picking this up.

I get the idea of this book and I think it had good intentions of being a great nonfiction book. But in the end I was bored by the time I got to 20% of the book. The kidnapping stories all ended up seeming like repeated information and the same story. I was just uninterested by that point. I think it’s well written and easy to understand as a nonfiction full of dates and names. I think you’d enjoy this book if you were into the gangs of the 1930s.

The author does a good job of describing the spate of kidnappings in the 1930s. Focusing on the biggest case, the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby.
HOWEVER, there are a few downsides. One is that he brings in so many cases and then leaves them hanging. For instance, what happened to the young twin girl who was kidnapped? Did they find her kidnappers/killers?
I found the chapters were short and the subject long.
This book should have focused on a handful of kidnappings and not try to speed through a bunch of kidnappings.

i really enjoyed reading this book, it was an interesting read because I had never learned this case before. It was kinda terrifying to think about.

Unfortunately, once I started this book, I just couldn't get into it. It's not my genre apparently. I would not have requested it if I had realized that. This is nothing bad toward the author, it's just not my type of book. I will not give any type of bad review to Barnes and Noble, Amazon, or Good Reads.

What and interesting true crime novel. covering 1930's , this was a scary time to live in. If you enjoy true crime stories, then you will enjoy this book. it was pretty hard to put down. Thank you Sourcebooks for this gifted copy via NetGalley.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

The Kidnap Years is an in-depth look at numerous kidnappings that took place in the United States in the early 1930s. The book also discusses the creation of the FBI, J.Edgar Hoover, issues around prohibition, gangsters, and the mob. The most famous of all kidnappings, of course, is the Lindbergh Baby kidnapping, and this case was gone over in intricate detail.

While I found parts of the book to be interesting, particularly the formation of the FBI and some of the investigation surrounding the Lindbergh case, the kidnapping stories themselves became repetitious after just a few chapters. The conclusion to the book felt a bit rushed and contrived and I was left wondering what was the point? I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I thought this would be a more interesting subject than was presented in this book.

This is a fascinating book about the rash of kidnappings during the 1930s and 40s , lots of information and details make this a great book for true crime lovers

The Kidnap Years: The Astonishing True History of the Forgotten Kidnapping Epidemic That Shook Depression-Era America is an interesting read. I am giving it four stars.

The Kidnap Years: The Astonishing True History of the Forgotten Kidnapping Epidemic That Shook Depression-Era America by David Stout is a 2020 Sourcebooks publication.

Back in the 1930’s kidnapping became almost an epidemic. It wasn't just children and babies that fell victim, but adults too.

This book examines these kidnappings, some familiar, some not- and yes, I suppose it is fair to say, this kidnapping rampage has been largely forgotten about. But, at the center of the book is the infamous Lindbergh kidnapping. It was that case that tipped the scales and forced a hardline crackdown. For me though, it was the lesser known cases that made the book interesting, especially since the Lindbergh kidnapping, as well as one or two others mentioned in this book, has been examined ad nauseum, and as far as I could tell there was nothing new about those cases printed here.

There are other famous or infamous people in this book, though, besides the Lindbergh's. The FBI and Hoover’s involvement were also featured prominently at times. The author stayed on topic, and did not veer into personal commentary, for the most part, which was fine by me.

The organization is a little uneven spreading out some cases throughout the book, instead of putting all the information into one or more chapters, running consecutively. This was a little distracting for me, but a minor quibble.

Otherwise, the book reflects the desperation of the thirties, as well as the way money, greed and politics, all bled together to create the perfect climate for the kidnapping crime sprees of the decade.

Anyone who enjoys history or true crime will want to consider giving this book a try.

4 stars
8 likes

I must have been absent when these events were discussed in History class. It certainly would have kept my attention and made that class much more interesting. This book discussed the spate of kidnappings that occurred during the Great Depression. No one was immune from this threat- rich, poor, old, young- everyone seemed to be fair game. The outcomes of the kidnappings were varied- some were ransomed for the full price, some were ransomed for a discount, some were returned unharmed, and still others were killed. The overarching story is of the Lindberg kidnapping, murder and outcome.
I loved that I was reading history and enjoyed it! Every story was well reasearched, and the reader can see the effort put in by the author to make things accurate. If all history was this interesting, it would be my favorite genre!
Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC in return for my review.

The Kidnap Years
The Astonishing True History of the Forgotten Kidnapping Epidemic That Shook Depression-Era America
by David Stout


SOURCEBOOKS (non-fiction)
Sourcebooks
History
True Crime
Pub Date 07 Apr 2020


I am reviewing a copy of The Kidnap Years through Sourcebooks and Netgalley:





The Great Depression in America was a time of great desperation, as parents struggled simply to feed their children, and unemployed brother levels were at record highs.






Adding to the lawlessness of the Great Depression thugs with submachine guns and corrupt law-enforcement officers ran rampant. But in the panic there was a sure fire way to make money, it was one used by criminals and resourceful civilians as well, that was kidnapping.






Edgar Award winning author David Stout allows us to jump into this forgotten history. He does so by exploring. the horrifying details of these abduction cases, from the methods used and the investigative processes to the personal histories of the culprits and victims. This all cumulates to the most infamous kidnapping in American history. The one that targeted an international legend and changed kidnapping laws forever, The Lindbergh kidnapping.



I give The Kidnap Years five out of five stars!



Happy Reading!

The amount of research and knowledge that went into the writing of this book is truly astounding and David Stout deserves ALL of the accolades this book is receiving. As someone who truly loves the true crime genre, this book stood out for its originality and for the way that Stout so masterfully blended the historical context with the crimes themselves-coming out of the depression and into a string of unprecedented kidnappings and everything that came along with it. I loved that so many crimes were detailed (but not overly so) so that I was able to get a good grasp of what was going on at that time in America.

If you are a fan of true crime, this book will shoot right to the top of your favorites list, I promise! It was so well-written, I was sad when it was over. Bravo, David Stout, you are such an extraordinary writer!

5 out of 5 stars for The Kidnap Year by David Stout. A HUGE thanks to the author, SOURCEBOOKS, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this phenomenal book. All opinions are completely my own.

An interesting look at a forgotten epidemic of crime; the standout cases like that of the Lindbergh Baby and Grace Budd have persisted in the public memory, but the context has disappeared, and Stout returns it. A little dry in places, but the links to post-Prohibition gang crimes are fascinating.

I would have given this five stars if there were not so many damned exclamation points.

Naturally when one thinks of kidnappings in the 1930s, the first case that almost always comes to mind is that of Charles Lindbergh's twenty-month- old son, Charles Jr. That case is discussed extensively throughout the book, while other less high-profile cases are also given equal footing.

One thing I really appreciated about this book is that it was more or less chronological, and did not tell each kidnapping story individually. As the author moved through the decade when his epidemic was at an all-time high, we see which cases overlapped, and sometimes had to wait several sections for any kind of resolution. I personally liked this, as it was as realistic as one can get without having actually lived through it.

There is such a blend of themes here and they are woven together well. The Great Depression is in full swing and families are struggling to simply survive. Prohibition was coming to an end, so those who made their living that way were seeing income dry up as quickly as the country was supposed to when the law went into effect in 1920. On top of that the likes of Dillinger, the Barkers, and so many others were terrorizing the country, sometimes opposed by police and sometimes assisted. The constant message though, was one of desperation and despair that drove so many to attempt or carry out these crimes.

While it would be impossible to recount every single case, there are enough discussed here to really give the reader a feel for what it felt like to live through such a time. Most of the time the victims or survivors were held for ransom. Some were lucky enough to see their families again, though they were scarred for life from the experience. Others were not, and only in death were reunited with loved ones.

I found it especially difficult to read about the children who were kidnapped for far more nefarious reasons than ransom. The story of Grace Budd was absolutely heartbreaking and I feel so terribly for her parents and siblings. It is a horrific case and one I would rather not dwell on much here or I will probably start crying again, just thinking of the anguish her parents felt and the blame they put on themselves for believing the lies they were told and allowing their beloved daughter to go to the birthday party for a man's niece, the man whom they had only recently met.

As one would expect, we see ol' Hoover trying to insert himself into any investigation he could. Even when, and maybe especially because, his agency often came under fire for being incompetent and out of control. He wanted to be seen at apprehensions and discoveries in order to portray himself as the one who was cleverly solving these crimes and in full control, that the newspaper reports were wrong.

I found it especially interesting to read of how many families contacted police to inform them of the kidnappings, but also asked they stand down while the family also contacted those who might, shall we say, have connection to the world in which the kidnappers moved in. More than one case detailed in this book was solved this way and it should not have surprised me. After all, many wealthy families had some underworld contacts for a variety of reasons, and sometimes those contacts were able to make far more progress than law enforcement. One must also not overlook the corruption that permeated some police forces, so many were right to not trust those supposedly sworn to protect them.

The plethora of exclamation points aside, the author does a fantastic job transporting the reader back to this turbulent period where no one was truly safe from the epidemic, whether rich or poor - it merely depended upon the perp's purpose for the kidnapping. Most were for ransom, and more were returned to their families than not - here, at least. I can't speak for the statistics overall, but from the cases presented in the book only.

Any reader interested in this period will find value in this book. I hesitate to use the word 'enjoy' because how does one enjoy a story about kidnapping and murder. I think, however, everyone gets the point. Highly recommended.

I received this book from Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Edgar award winning author explores the reports of a plethora of kidnappings during the Depression era. Newspapers were inundated with abduction articles. Kansas City and St. Louis were especially hit with a series of kidnappings. This book investigates the phenomena as it discusses the methods, culprits, victimology, and investigative process. What pushes people to do the unthinkable? The Lindbergh case is discussed over and over again. The beginnings of the F.B.I. and Hoovers involvement in the cases is also discussed.
Interesting if not a little repetitive at times. Good for a crime aficionado.

"The Kidnap Years" by David Stout is truly a fascinating read. I didn't know about the kidnapping epidemic that went on during the 1930s and terrorized America, but I felt like the book failed to explain why that happened and why it stopped. This is basically a collection of (very) short stories about kidnappings that occurred during that time, but it jumps from a case to another and then jumps back again to the previous case in a way that I found utterly confusing.

The book focused on too many cases when it would have benefitted from choosing half of them and going deeper into those stories. To be honest, I finished the book two hours ago, and I can't remember anything meaningful because I had too much info to deal with, and not even half of them mattered or helped me "feel" more towards a case. Any case, actually.

Don't get me wrong; I can see the book was thoroughly researched, but having been thrown at all these pieces of information, made me lose interest pretty soon. Information after information after information and the book never manages to anchor me to a single page or a single human being. Do you want to know what is missing? Depth. It's a great history book that I will use for references, but other than that, I don't know if someone who is not into true crimes might enjoy a book that is missing a bit of a soul.

I have not had the best of luck in getting through the beginning of this novel. I was so excited to read this novel when I stumbled upon it on NetGalley. Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting through the intro and this novel was almost a DNF before it even began. The author gives a lot of information and facts, which to some may be helpful, but to me it was information overload. I also felt like the information jumped all over the place and I wasn't sure if it was going to have anything to do with the actual novel itself other then set the time period. I would of rather the author mixed in the information in the into through out the individual chapters themselves. Ultimately, I put the novel down for now. Hoping to return to it when I'm in a better head space.